Gee, Cats would be super confident but the Breakers have gone from "once were" to absolutely smashing it at the right time of the year.

If Corey Webster stays out of foul trouble then Breakers to bag this game

I am very nervous.

Cats by 6.

My fingernails have not grown back from the semifinals yet, i fear I may start biting into my actual fingers during this series. This game is going to be so intense. Cats to get the win in a thriller.

my ideal scenario.

Wildcats lose game 1
NZ lose game 2
Wildcats win game 3.

Hard to get excited with the game starting at 11.40pm ish at night, but that's unavoidable. I know Perth can't bring it forward any forward.

It is on at 9.30pm where it matters :P

I'm tipping the Breakers in two.

Perth to win game 1 if they have their usual armchair ride with the home umpiring.

If the umpiring is excellent then I think it may be a close contest and should NZ win in Perth it might be a two game final series.

For those interested channel 9 has a schedule for game 2 Friday and game 3 on Sunday. No game tonight.

The Nine deal was supposed to have five finals games. I think we only had the one Sunday game in the semie's so there might actually only be two games delivered if this weekend is done in two.

I was hoping the Hawks would make it for a change so I will enjoy watching with no favor.

First week of NBL this season I have no interest in. Cats should win with home court advantage, Hope NZ win though, hate them a little less than Perth.

As a Perth fan, this finals campaign doesn't feel that special. We are just too use to it. It's more of a formality than anything.

It'll be good to win, but if we don't we'll be in with a shot again next year.

The Wildcats needed the ship win in 14 to make up for the losses to NZ and get a championship win at Perth Arena. We've made the playoffs for 30 years straight. It's all part of the drill.

If we weren't playing NZ - the only other team close to our stratosphere of consistent success this would be a rather boring grand final series.

There's just no hype to this grandfinal series as a Perth fan. Winning is just expected.

I know that's hard for other fans to comprehend, but that's why we are better than you.

*flame suit on*

There is no way I will be staying up to watch this one unfortunately but will record it on MySky.
Should be a cracker of a game no matter the result.

All banter aside it will be a big ask for the Breakers to win this one on the road but in saying that if anyone can pull that rabbit out of their hat, it'll be this NZ side.

Best of luck to both sides and lets hope their are no injuries, I would hate for Perth to have an excuse :p

Already seen people out and about in the CBD with their Wildcat's gear on and Prather and Beal were on the front page this morning next to the Trophy (which looks okay.. but was expecting something with more oomph)

Who's championship is this to loose?

Is it Perth's or New Zealands?

I think it's pretty tight. All comes down to game one.

Well, looking forward to this series, I think the Wildcats can win it but it will be a tough grind and if they don't all come to play hard the Breakers can upset them.

That's where I think Perth can match NZ, where Melbourne couldn't, in the physical match-ups.

That said, I wish the NBL would spread the games just a little more, then next year bring in a five game final series...

The team with the highest score will win if they're in front at the end.

ADMIN: Can this thread be bumped back to the top please?

Randles whereabouts for next year won't have any bearing on the GF this year or next year for that matter.

Cats NEED to win tonight.
They find winning in NZ tough enough, and if they head to NZ one game down, that will be all over.
Hopeful, but not confident.

Need Jawai up and firing from the tip-off, gotta get on the boards and get Jackson into foul trouble early
.
At the end of the season, so many players are carrying niggling injuries. We know Jawai has problems with his back, exacerbated by air-travel, just one example. I'm just worried the Breakers extra rest gives them an advantage, and a chance of ambushing the Cats tonight.
But at the end of the day, if Jawai doesn't make a big impact in the finals, that's a gamble they took on a guy with fitness/health concerns. Can't complain.

Tall blacks favorites, perth have a good shot at it. No one plays in front of 13 000 people that are expected to win. No excuses, it's tough for the player's to play knowing not to disappoint.

Nz to lose in my opinion, it's country b state not many state teams will beat a country team.

Jawai mvps, bring the 7th championship home.

All the best to both teams both play hard and Pledger said it best, it's not Nz or perth fault everyone is just making up the numbers.

Perth and Nz deserve where they are and none of the crap that is spoken on here matters, the best two teams are standing!

A state team with 3 Americans, a few guys who have played for Australia and a Tall Black? Cry me a river.

Have much are Prather and Abercrombie paying to be Grand Final MVP?

What can I say.

I've got a 125 on NZ winning gm 1 and a 125 on them winning the series.

I am a faithless rat :D

Not crying, just a fact. You put the best Aussie player's to play in your mvps then we can compare. Don't give me the a academy crap, end of the day it is how it is.

Jawai was paying $25+ for MVP last I looked.

Sounds exactly like crying, at least you have your excuses all lined up if the Breakers win.

Super rugby? They will win that to! Think about it!

Flophage looking to flop early!

I think (probably like most) whoever wins game 1 wins the series.

They've met 4 times this season and NZ have won both at home and likewise Perth at home.

D Martin looking fantastic early

Wow. That foul call on Vukona.

Knight drew all the contact.

We can't win this. Too many fouls early have already kooked us.

BTW that wasn't a knock on the other foul calls. Vukona and Pledger had two dumb reach in fouls. Just silly

FOUL FOUL FOUL FOUL FOUL FOUL FOUL

The NBL want big TV ratings, big crowds....yet they turn the games on the big stage nothing but a foul fest.

LOL...hardball

Kenny and Flophage with consecutive 3s!!

No way that's sustainable though. Both been stinking for a while now.

Good up tempo game so far

Surprise Surprise, cats with 1 foul, breakers with 5.

Give em one thing, they know how to get the right refs

Live score says foul count is NZ 7, Perth 1.

Does that sum up the game?

I'm not able to watch it.

Seriously!!

Too many fouls called. Ruining the spectacle!!

Now all the fouls are going the breakers way.....TOO MANY FOULS!!

Vukona is a beast.

Love the way the Cats started: Aggressive on the boards, Jawai involved early, he and KNight going at them inside, Pledger and Vukona already in foul trouble.

Nah refs aren't bias. NZ not shooting well.

But i just don't know why refs have this natural predisposition to call games tighter at PA. It always happens.

I think its Gleeson and the crowd. Those voices influence the ref to tighten it up. Gleeson asks for more fouls on basically the slightest of contact so he gets it and then the refs obviously call it the same the other way to get consistency. So a normal game slowly becomes an iverrefereed affair.

I believe that happens.

Does at least 1 team have to be in the bonus EVERY quarter? Is that the rules of the league?

Do the referees get a bonus?

Jawai is earning his years salary in the 1st half here. Damn he is good!!

Jawai is winding back the clock!!

Great call there.

Jawai's playing very good no question.

But he is benefiting from the referee interpretation. Referees calling the game very tight so defenders basically can't do anything.

NZ should be exploiting the same down the other end but they're not playing smart ball so their loss

LOL 14 fouls in 6 minutes LOL

HARDBALL LOLOLOL

Jawai off the floor and Perth ran a terrible set. They looked lost

Tempo is the blowout troll?

Up by 7 at half time without Beal and Prather doing much on the offensive end,i'll take that. The game is being played in surges from each team. Long way to go, but the fouls on their bigs will certainly help.

In other news, how exceptional is the fox coverage in high def!

1000 X better than the crap TEN dished up.

Have we entered an alternate reality?
Jawai getting all the calls tonight, including that flop call on Wesley.

Here come the breakers!!!

FOUL FOUL FOUL FOUL FOUL FOUL FOUL

The refs think it is all about them.

Ratings go down, attendances go down....Teams go broke and the league doesnt understand why LOL

BREAKERS!!!!!

How are the Breakers winning this?!?! WOW!!!

Perths offence is a joke.

No movement, end up with kenny jacking up shots. LOL.

When Damian Martin is your third highest scorer with 7 you know you're in trouble. Especially when Beal and Prather are below him.

Gleeson is a bum.

His prancing makes the neutral fans favour the breakers

Hahahahaha Trevor Gleeson stop acting like a moron on the sideline. Wagstaff CLEARLY not in position. Smh.

Lol

+1

Gleeson is a deadshit

2 terrible offensive fouls called on Prather.

MASSIVE last quarter coming up!!!

Nice goal tend from Martin.

Breakers had their chances but blew it in the last 3 minutes. Martin standing up and has made some huge plays in the 4th.

D Martin is easily the best player on this Perth team.

First Abercrombie and now Webster hits a 3. Wow, great fight from NZ.

Lol, Webster showed Kenny a grown up move.

LOL Perth have a foul to give...and they dont foul...

Cats firmly in the drivers seat to take this series now. Breakers fought right to the end so if it does go to game 3 they will take confidence from this performance.

Gleeson is a flog

Thought I'd drop in and see if there were any intelligent comments on tonight's game.

Nope.

Same old "Gleeson's a flog", "Dime Beal", "Wildcats suck" rubbish. And I thought Ozhoops was bad!

If the Wildcats are so shit how come we still won? If Beal, Wagstaff & Prather hit their usual shots this is a blow out.

By the way Spot up check the replay on Martin's block. You must be the Kiwi flog that was sitting behind me tonight.

Far from convincing, but I guess that's finals pressure. I'll happily take it.
Massive first half by Nate to give us back the upper hand when NZ looked like taking it. Kenny & Redhage with some timely contributions too.
Neither team handled the pressure down the stretch very well at all. The difference was that we had Damo.

After making a point of saying he had to stop getting caught with his hand in the cookie jar, I was pretty disappointed with Prather's early fouls. Going to need him to step up to be a chance in game 2.

"Thought I'd drop in and see if there were any intelligent comments on tonight's game.

Nope."


Instead of whining, feel free to get the ball rolling with some intelligent comments on tonight's game.

Nope.

That block by Damo, man, decisive moment for the game, possibly the series.

@ MACDUB, not disagreeing with you mate about the fouls at Perth Arena, but in fairness I think it was the 2nd quarter and there was contact on 4 players and the ball went out of bounds and the crowd were kind of perplexed like 'aren't you gonna call something'... So yeah the refs could have called far more tonight.

I don't know what others think about tonight's game but both team in the second half seems to rush and it made the game look sloppy and bad shots were taken and that is surprising from these veteran line ups.

I don't think anybody should be concerned with the lack of output from Jervis as he only had 1 foul yet played under 12 minutes so he is clearly being saved for another day.

I hope both teams can be as fit and ready to go on Friday

Congrats to the Wildcats for protecting home court. Now let's see if NZ can do the same and make it a 3 game series.

Good win, was never going to be an easy game, didn't help that Beal disappeared again, and Prather can't seem to stay out of foul trouble.

Game style and opponent suited Jawai to a tee, no surprise he had a reasonable game. Our few outside shooters that we have will need to find a way to score, as you'd imagine a zone will be played against Nate from now on.

If it does not go to 3 it will be one of the Wildcats special wins beating them over there.

Heaters, it looked to me like a goal tend on the replay. Wouldn't have written it otherwise. Martin was still probably the difference between the two teams in the end anyway.

How about trying to write something positive about your own team rather than worrying about everyone else so much.

SPOT UP- Check the replay on the block again, not sure how it can be a goal tend if he blocks it before it's above the rim.

Damian Martin- what a defensive effort.

2 key plays in the last 5 minutes- his block of Webster's lay up and his trapping of CedriC J in the back court.

I'll take your word for it as cbf finding a replay now. In the replay I saw it looked like it was on the way down, I assumed it would have been above the ring and was not going to airball.

If you can be bothered Perth Wildcats facebook page shows it, in the wrap of the game.

And the 1979 St Kilda team would beat all of them and give the Warriors a touch up.

It's actually reassuring to see Perth win with Beal having a quiet night. Previously it was a case of No Beal = No Cats.
The problem with Beal has always been that he's a volume shooter. He's top 10 for points, but only shoots 37%. He was down on that last night, but might have picked it up with a few more, but it's not very efficient.
It's a damn worry when your top scorer is also your least accurate. This may be a symptom of the "go to Beal" philospiphy, in which case hopefully he can reinvent himself for next season.