Round 20 in NBL24 continues on Friday night with a juicy double-header. First up on the night is a crucial battle between the New Zealand Breakers and the Brisbane Bullets. We bring you our full game preview and best bet below!
Also, we’re providing previews and expert betting tips for every game of the NBL24 season, so make sure to head over to our NBL Tips page regularly to keep up to date with all of our content.
NBL24 Round 20 Preview & Betting Tips
New Zealand Breakers vs Brisbane Bullets
Friday 5:30pm AEDT, February 16th, Spark Arena
After a terrific second half of the season, the New Zealand Breakers have the opportunity to clinch a finals berth with a win on Friday night. They had the chance to put themselves in the box seat for a finals spot with a win against Melbourne United last start, but ultimately came up short against the ladder-leaders in fairly comfortable fashion (81-94).
The Breakers have had to make some changes to their offence on the fly since Anthony Lamb went down with an Achilles injury a couple of games ago. Will McDowell-White has stepped into the starting lineup and has become a vitally important cog in their machine. He was fantastic with 19 points in 23 minutes against United and could’ve had an even bigger impact if it wasn’t for foul trouble.
Similarly, the Brisbane Bullets can book their ticket to the final six with a victory on enemy territory on Friday night. They were able to keep their dream alive with a big win over the 36ers last start (102-84) which snapped a mini two-game losing streak. Nathan Sobey was massive in the win with 37 points (career-high) and did all of his work in the first three quarters.
Still, the Bullets have it all to do if they’re to make the post-season, as a loss in this one will almost definitely see them miss the top six. They’ll finish the night in sixth spot if they’re to lose and would need the Kings to lose against the Phoenix on Saturday night, which is very, very unlikely with all the injuries and form issues the Phoenix are dealing with.
Match prediction: This is the biggest game of the season for both sides and arguably the biggest of any regular season game in NBL24 period. The Breakers have home court advantage on their side which has been big for them down the stretch. They’ve won each of their last three games in New Zealand, defeating a pair of top four sides in that stretch. In contrast, the Bullets have struggled on the road of late with four losses in a row against teams currently in the top six.
The Breakers were victorious the last time these teams met which was in Brisbane in late December (81-71). They’ve only improved since then and with home court on their side on this occasion, I’m expecting another similar result on Friday night.
New Zealand Breakers -4.5
$1.90 (1.5 Units)
