How to watch & talking points: New Zealand v Melbourne

30 Jan 2026

new zealand breakers

melbourne united

A desperate New Zealand Breakers host Melbourne United in a crucial Round 19 fixture.

New Zealand Breakers (7th) v Melbourne United (4th)
Friday, January 30, 5.30pm AEDT
Spark Arena

How to watch‍

‍Watch every game live on ESPN.

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Tickets

>> Ticketing information

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Talking points

A Legend immortalised
Tom Abercrombie, arguably the greatest ever New Zealand Breaker, will have his jersey retired by the club in which he helped bring so much success for.

One of the true journeymen of the sport, Abercrombie did a bit of everything for the Breakers, but the four championships stand out as one of the best to have played the game.

While the game itself means so much to the Breakers final's hopes - putting on a strong performance before they put that jersey in the rafters is equally as important.

United back to full strength
Melbourne United have won three straight and are set to welcome back Shea Ili, who has missed a large majority of this season with hamstring concerns.

It will be the first time in over two months that this team is whole and as they start to tap back into their early season form, could they pose a real threat once again?

Chris Goulding, Milton Doyle, Jesse Edwards are all back to playing their best basketball and it's no surprise the wins are piling up.

What they're saying

Breakers import Izaiah Brockington on his growth this season:
"Early in the season it did mess with my rhythm a bit if I didn't see the ball a lot .

"Now I've just blocked out the noise and believe in the work I've put in, and I want to be a guy my team can trust at the end of games so I just stay ready."

United star Chris Goulding on playing the Breakers:
“It’s always fun to go to New Zealand.

“I expect them to fight, they're well coached, they got superstar players, they got a couple injuries, but oftentimes at this part of the year, you know, there's been guys waiting in the wings ready for an opportunity, so we've got to be careful.

“We've got to be locked in on our scout and make sure that, you know, we are continuing to get better defensively.”