Koponen lauds Breakers’ next man up mentality

Despite their front court being decimated, the New Zealand Breakers flipped the script on Saturday night, forcing the Illawarra Hawks to abandon their size and go small in a courageous win at Spark Arena.

Jack Andrew was a shining example of staying ready under coach Petteri Koponen, as a Breakers front court missing Sam Mennenga, Rob Baker II and Karim Lopez stared down a Hawks lineup led by JaVale McGee and Sam Froling. On paper, it had all the makings of a nightmare matchup.

Instead, veteran Rob Loe and Andrew stood tall, holding the fort and setting the tone. New Zealand’s pace and intent proved decisive, piling on 61 points in the first half and turning the pressure back onto Illawarra.

Even with McGee recording 15 points and seven rebounds before the break, the Hawks made a dramatic adjustment after half-time. McGee didn’t return to the floor, as Illawarra went small in an effort to keep up with a Breakers side playing with confidence and freedom.

For Koponen, that adjustment said everything about his team’s performance.

"That's the biggest message, they had to adjust to us in the second half and go small and still, we kept finding ways to score baskets," Koponen said.

"Obviously in the first half how we were sharing the ball, playing the next action, finding the advantages with ease kinda, that gave us the confidence."

That confidence carried through the rotation, something that hasn’t always been a given for New Zealand this season.

"And many times this season when we go to the bench or change something, our level might drop down, but today I think everybody when they stepped onto the court starting from Jack which was really huge after Max (Darling) picked up two fouls in the beginning."

Andrew’s impact only grew as the game wore on, earning Koponen’s trust to stay on the floor through the second half.

"Jack had a great impact in the game and then in the second half we rolled with him because he was doing an excellent job, and he and Rob Loe played huge minutes against Froling and McGee, and in the second half they went smaller and they had to adjust to us."

Loe and Andrew combined for 38 minutes at the five, while Sean Bairstow stepped into Karim Lopez’s role, supported by Reuben Te Rangi. Together, they absorbed Illawarra’s size before exploiting mismatches in the back court.

It was a textbook example of a next-man-up mentality, something Koponen was proud of after the win, with Andrew embodying exactly what it means to be ready when the opportunity arrives.

Having barely featured all season, Andrew made the most of his opportunity, logging 12:32 of court time and knocking down two three-pointers, the first of his NBL career.

"It tells something about this group and everybody that goes on the court they want to show what they can do, and they want to use this opportunity," Koponen said.

"We've got many guys in our team more so who wants to take that next step and show what they can do in this league, and the only way is to work in practice, be patient and wait for the opportunity.

"Then when the opportunity comes, like Jack tonight, that's basketball and for the young guys and everybody, the only that they can do is keep working in practice and wait for the opportunity, and be ready to take that."