The focus on defence in training over the last week proved to be worthwhile as the Breakers Women held Oaklands Wolves to just 37 points in their dominant away win on Saturday evening.

Oaklands started the game well and it took MK a while to get going, but after Sarah Round netted the first five points for the Breakers, Courtney Gray came off the bench and made an immediate impact. Her performance at both ends of the floor helped MK to a seven point lead at the end of the first quarter (10-17).

At the start of the second period, Sarah Round once again started the scoring hitting the first six points from strong drives. When she was forced to temporarily leave the floor with a minor injury, Jordan Elliott-King, Lauren Milne and Vanessa Obanor highlighted the team’s strength in depth as they all chipping in with points of their own. MK went on an impressive run at the end of the quarter which ended with a well-executed play finished off by Courtney Gray that gave the Breakers a comfortable 15 point lead (19-34).

Going into the second half, MK’s mood was positive but Oaklands attempted to mount a comeback. However, even though Oaklands had their best quarter, good ball and player movement by the Breakers resulted in numerous drives to the basket or passes to the interior. By the end of the period, the Breakers had added three more points to their lead (34-52).

The instruction to the MK players as they came out for the fourth quarter was to maintain the defensive intensity and they didn’t disappoint. Great work as a unit made it difficult for Oaklands to get to the rim and forced some tough shots. This, combined with some intelligent steals held the hosts to just three points in the quarter. Offensively, MK slowed the pace of their offence but still managed to maintain a good scoring rate. Courtney Gray finished off her excellent game with the team’s last six points that took her personal total to 14 points. Sarah Round led the team’s scoring with 17 points and Coach Round was pleased to see so many of the players make significant contributions.

At the end of the game, Coach Round commented, “I like the way Oaklands switched their defence many times but we spotted and responded to the changes quickly.” He added, “The referees were happy for it to be a physical game and we embraced that. We didn’t shy away from the contact and we didn’t let it bother us. We stayed locked it on court and there was tremendous energy from the bench. Overall, it was a great team effort.”

The next game for the women will mean a trip up the M6 to play Trafford Mystics at the Manchester Basketball Centre on Sunday 30th November.

The post Breakers Women secure dominant win appeared first on MK Breakers Basketball Club.

Having previously played in several of Europe’s top leagues and FIBA Europe Cup, we were delighted when Chris chose to return home and represent home town of Milton Keynes. 

Chris joined the Breakers in the 2023/34 season, a year in which the team dominated NBL Division 2, and made history becoming the first non-Division 1 side in over 50 years to lift the National Cup. Chris was instrumental in helping the Breakers complete the treble, saving one of his best performances of the season for the Playoff Final, scoring 21 points and grabbing 15 rebounds.

Averaging 16.17 points and 8.9 rebounds per game last season in NBL Division 1, Tawiah’s contribution was again crucial to Breakers’ success as we reached the Playoff and Trophy finals in the club’s first ever season at that level.

Speaking on his time with the Breakers, Tawiah stated ““There’s no place like home”. I am lucky and grateful to have been able to start and close my playing career at home where it all started. I leave with many happy memories and want to thank everyone at MK Breakers and the fans for all their support over the last two years.”.

MK Breakers General Manager Josh Merrington added “Everyone at the club would like to thank Chris for his contributions to the club over the past 2 and a bit season’s. We wish him all the best in the future.”

Everyone at the club wishes Chris all the best in his future endeavours.

The post Thank You Chris appeared first on MK Breakers Basketball Club.

This BCB outing got off to a great start as good defence and rebounding saw Breakers jump out to an 8-0 lead. They would continue in that vein for the rest of the opening quarter, not only holding a commanding 21-9 lead, but also outrebounding Rockets 19-9 over the 10-minute period.

But as they so often have under Head Coach Samit Nuruzade, Reading found their way back into the game. A second quarter run saw them pull within four points by half time, and then after the break the lead began to see-saw back and forth between the two teams as neither could fully gain control of the contest.

Jordan Spencer would hit some big shots on his way to a 26-point, 6 assist performance that saw him go 7/14 from the field and 9/10 from the free throw line, alongside solid contributions from Dashawn Jackson (19 points, 7 rebounds) and Xavier Wilson (13 points, 8 rebounds).

Yet it would be Reading who came out on top, delivering down the stretch to secure a 87-94 victory that ultimately left Breakers Head Coach Ben Stanley frustrated after the impressive way his side started the game.

“It’s a tough one to take,” he said shortly after the final buzzer. “We came out super aggressive and executed everything we worked on in practice, but I think we went away from what was working for us.”

“Overall, you can say we didn’t shoot the ball as well as we normally do, but we can absorb that if we’re just more consistent on the defensive end. Reading are very talented and very well-coached, so to have been ahead for most of the game we know that we can compete with the best teams in the league.”

Breakers get the chance to put things right next Saturday, returning to Bletchley Leisure Centre for a home game against Essex Rebels. Tip-off is at 17:00 and tickets are available here.

The post Breakers fall short in back and forth encounter appeared first on MK Breakers Basketball Club.

A gutsy, hard-fought win in front of an enthusiastic home crowd moved the MK Breakers Women to the top of the league after the Saturday Division 2 – Pool A matches.

Going into the game, both teams were carrying just one loss and the expectation was that it was going to be a close contest. The expectation became reality as, when the final buzzer sounded, only three points separated the two sides.

The Breakers were back to full strength with the return of Sarah Round, who helped MK establish and early lead. However, despite her 13 first quarter points, which included there 3-pointers, the Rockets matched MK’s first quarter total of 24 points as a result of multiple trips to the free throw line.

Birmingham’s zone defence had frustrated MK through the first quarter, but in the second quarter MK started to find the gaps. Some great inside play from Lauren Milne earned her seven points in the period and several intelligent kick-outs from Vanessa Obanor gave Kirsten Moran and Courtney Gray opportunities to knock down some long range shots. At the other end of the floor, the Breakers held Birmingham to just seven points giving them a commanding 46-31 half-time lead. The mood was positive going into the break as the quarter had finished with a very well-executed sideline play that ended with a Courtney Gray score on the buzzer.

The Breakers run at the end of the second period had made it look like they had taken control of the game, but not in the eyes of the Rockets. Nuri Calderon led the charge for the visitors as they mounted an impressive comeback. Her fighting spirit on defence and her do-it-all offence energised her teammates as they shaved nine points off the MK lead to finish the quarter just six points behind (62-56). Arguably, the Breakers got what they deserved in the third quarter as their defence was lack lustre and they lost their way offensively.

Coming out for the fourth quarter, MK needed to dig deep to halt Birmingham’s progress. In what proved to be an exciting and entertaining final period packed with lots of impressive play from both teams, it was impossible to predict which way the game was going to go. A series of 3-pointers from the Rockets gave them the lead and it began to look like they were going to steal the win, but MK maintained their composure and re-took the lead. With 11 seconds left on the clock and the score showing as 77-74 in MK’s favour, Birmingham had one last opportunity to force the game to overtime from a sideline play. Although they managed to find the 3-point shot they needed, it was unsuccessful and when the rebound fell to the Breakers, the celebrations began.

Speaking after the game, Coach Round commented, “Birmingham are a talented, well-coached team. They were determined and aggressive in the right way. Calderon had a great game as did Grace Brownell who shot incredibly well.” He added, “We were fortunate that we managed to hang on for the win, but regardless of the result, I enjoyed being part of what was a great contest.”

Next week, MK Breakers Women make the short journey to St Albans where they play an Oaklands team stacked with WEABL players.

The post Breakers Women secure important win appeared first on MK Breakers Basketball Club.

The team was given a major boost as Jordan Spencer returned to the lineup after injury, taking his place in the starting five alongside Dashawn Jackson, Jonas Dieterich, Chase Thompson and Xavier Wilson.

That unit clicked immediately, jumping out to a 10-0 lead to start the game and forcing Hoods to call an early timeout. Yet it seemed to have very little impact as Breakers renewed commitment to defence saw them repeatedly getting stops, heading into halftime with a commanding 42-25 advantage.

Hoods would rebound literally and figuratively in the third quarter however, dominating on the boards and capitalising on second-chance points to cut into that deficit. Yet in the final frame, it would once again be the Breakers who grabbed control of the game, widening their lead to as many as 26 points before eventually securing an impressive 81-55 victory.

Unsurprisingly it would be behind a solid Player of the Game performance from Jordan Spencer, the Captain almost recording a triple-double as he weighed in with 17 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds.

But his team-mates made major contributions too, most notably Chase Thompson (15pts, 5 rebounds, 4 steals) and Xavier Wilson who stuffed the stat sheet with 12 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists, one steal and one block.

“It was a really committed performance from the guys,” said Breakers Head Coach Ben Stanley. “We really looked to execute the gameplan and put a tough Hoods team under pressure to hold them to such a low shooting percentage.”

“Our next steps will be to work on our consistency and not have those spells where we lapse or go away from what’s working.”

Ben and the team will now enjoy a rare weekend off, returning to action next Saturday when Reading Rockets visit Bletchley Leisure Centre. Tip-off is at 17:00 and tickets are available here.

The post Breakers Shoot Down Hoods appeared first on MK Breakers Basketball Club.

MK Breakers suffered their first loss of the season after making the long trip up to Middlesborough to play Tees Valley Mohawks. MK travelled with a depleted squad as three of the normal starters were unavailable, but there was still confidence going into the game as Tees Valley could only field six players – two less than the eight required according to the league rules – but they made it clear that they weren’t going to make it easy for the visitors.

With Tees Valley playing a 2-3 zone defence for 40 minutes, the game was more frustrating than entertaining. MK struggled to break through the zone in the early exchanges and Tees Valley benefitted from several fast break opportunities. The Breakers energy levels seemed to be low, probably as a result of the early start and long journey, but they were able to establish a five point lead by the end of the first quarter (21-16).

Tees Valley fought back at the start of the second period to take a 29-26 lead and the teams then traded baskets for most of the rest of the quarter. A gutsy late run from the Breakers gave them a 36-29 half-time lead, but it was all still to play for.

MK started the second half with what appeared to be some new-found energy. A switch to a 1-3-1 zone forced their opponents to take some tough shots and some great defensive rebounding combined with improved positivity on offence resulted in the Breakers opening up what should have been a secure lead (44-29). However, halfway through the third quarter it was Tees Valley’s turn to change their defensive strategy and the introduction of a full court press proved decisive. A series of MK turnovers allowed the hosts back into the game and going into the fourth quarter, MK’s lead had been cut to just two points (49-47).

The final period followed a similar pattern to the third with MK having more success for the first five minutes and re-establishing a five point lead (54-49). To their credit, Tees Valley refused to accept defeat and continued to cause the Breakers players issues with the press through the latter stages of the game. With less than two minutes left, the Mohawks wrestled the lead from the Breakers one more time and never let it go. The game finished 62-58, although it will be up to Basketball England to decide whether or not the result will stand due to the eight-player rule. Either way, it was a game that MK let slip through their fingers.

The highlights for the Breakers were Vanessa Obanor’s 16 point, 16 rebound double-double and Lauren Dabbs’s 14 points which included shooting 40% from three-point range (4 from 10).

The overall stats for the game make interesting reading as MK had the better two-point shooting percentage (45.2% v 33.3%), the better three-point shooting percentage (27.3% v 18.4%) and they out-rebounded Tees Valley 60 to 47. One of the more relevant stats was the free throws as Tees Valley hit 13 of 23 attempts (56.5%) whereas MK only hit 3 of 8 attempts (37.5%). However, the most important stat of all was the turnovers as the Breakers committed 33 compared to Tees Valley’s 15, which gave the Mohawks what proved to be a significant number of additional offences.

The MK women can now focus on training for a couple of weeks as they don’t have a game in the coming weekend.

The post Breakers Women fall short at Tees Valley appeared first on MK Breakers Basketball Club.

The home team were without injured duo Jordan Spencer and Blayne Freckleton, but were backed by a noisy crowd who got behind the team right from the opening tip-off. Breakers had a slow start, trailing 13-17 after the first six minutes of action before Luke Gregory was sent in from the bench.

Immediately, the veteran forward sparked his team into action, snaring an offensive rebound and scoring from close range. Gregory then cleaned the glass at the other end and ran the floor, converting another layup thanks to Xavier Wilson’s smart pass to bring the crowd to their feet.

It proved to be just the injection of energy that Breakers needed as they ended Q1 with a 25-19 lead that grew to 12 points by half-time, with Hurricanes unable to ever truly make it a contest after that.

Gregory would end the game with a team-high 16 points on 8-of-8 shooting, as well as five rebounds and an assist. Wilson also had 16 points of his own, adding three rebounds, three assists and five steals, while three other Breakers – Ben Baker, Chase Thompson and DaShawn Jackson – all hit double figures.

It was that feeling of collective effort that left Head Coach Ben Stanley most pleased after the final buzzer sounded. “A much more connected and urgent performance from us as a group today,” he said. “Things we’ve been working on were evident on the court today. It’s only one small step but we’ve proven we can move in the right direction”

Breakers will hope to continue that momentum when they travel to Harvey Haddon Sports Village for a game against Nottingham Hoods on Friday, November 7. Tip-off is at 19:30 and tickets are available here.

The post Breakers get back to winning ways appeared first on MK Breakers Basketball Club.

With the other semifinal having already been played, the two teams knew before tip-off that Yorkshire Dragons – who beat Falkirk Fury – were waiting for them in the showpiece event.

The game got off to a slow start, with Breakers missing a number of three-point attempts and going into the half time break trailing 41-32. Rockets then started the third quarter in impressive fashion, forcing a number of turnovers and stretching their lead to as many as 19 points.

Despite the team’s struggles there was another impressive performance from Chris Tawiah, the Breakers big man weighing in with an impressive 14 points from just nine shots and adding 11 rebounds along the way.

It would ultimately be in vain however, Rockets holding off a late fightback from the visitors to see out the game, winning by a 79-71 final score, much to the dismay of Breakers Head Coach Ben Stanley.

“It was a poor performance from us across the board,” he said. “We’re really disappointed to go out at this stage and not reach the final, it would’ve been another big game and a great experience for our fantastic supporters.

“Instead we’ve got to look back at what went wrong for us, then get to work on putting that right as quickly as possible so we can start to display the quality we know we have in this group.”

Up next for Breakers is a long-awaited home game, taking on Bristol Hurricanes at Bletchley Leisure Centre on Saturday, November 1st at 17:00. Tickets are available here.

The post Breakers lose BCB Trophy semifinal  appeared first on MK Breakers Basketball Club.

MK Breakers Women knew they faced a tough challenge when they welcomed title contenders, Hemel Storm, to Bletchley Leisure Centre for their fifth league match last Saturday. In what turned out to be an absolute thriller, the enthusiastic crowd were treated to a contest full of passion, energy and impressive teamwork from both sides.

Earlier in the week, it wasn’t certain that MK were going to be able to field a team as several players had illnesses and injuries. However, when it came to the day of the game, only two of the squad were still unavailable so although not quite at full strength, MK had enough players to be able to play the game.

It was Hemel who took the early lead and looked the more confident of the two teams, but the Breakers players settled and not only slowed Hemel’s progress, but regained some control. By the end of the first quarter, Storm’s lead was cut to just 2 points (13-15).

In the second quarter, the Hemel coached subbed out a couple of her key players as they’d both committed two fouls and Breakers seized their opportunity. Strong drives to the basket sent MK players to the free throw line multiple times and at the other end of the floor, Storm were held to just 7 points in the period. Although MK were guilty of too many turnovers and allowing Hemel too many offensive rebounds, they entered the mid-game break with a slender 25-22 lead.

Both teams adjusted their defences in the second half with Hemel trying a 2-3 zone and MK closing up the gaps in their man-to-man defence. Neither team did enough to take control of the quarter and the difference remained single digit not just for this period, but for the remainder of the game. It was Hemel who won the third period, but only by two points so there was only one point separating the teams as they entered the final stage of the game (39-38).

The excitement built in the hall through the final quarter as it became ever clearer that the game was going down to the wire. Breakers had held onto a fragile lead until Storm wrestled it from them to go one point up with just nine seconds left to play. Knowing it was going to be a close finish, Coach Round had held onto a timeout which gave him the opportunity to draw up a play. From the sideline, the ball went straight to Vanessa Obanor who went to work in the low post and her move to the basket earned her a free throw as she was fouled on her successful shot attempt. Breakers had the lead once again.

After converting the free throw, MK transitioned immediately into an up-court zone which forced a crucial turnover. As Breakers now had a two point lead with time running out, Hemel had no option but to foul which gave MK two more free throws, both of which were successful. It was the second of Lauren Dabbs’s free throws that put the game out of Hemel’s reach and the celebrations began.

Both teams were unbeaten going into the game so with the scoreboard reading 52-48 in MK’s favour, it was the home team who had claimed an important league win. However, both sets of players should be proud of their efforts in what proved to be a fabulous example of women’s basketball.

Coach Round’s player will now need to shift their focus to their next game which will be against Tees Valley Mohawks after a long drive up to Middlesborough on Sunday 2nd November.

The post Breakers Women secure gritty win appeared first on MK Breakers Basketball Club.

MK Breakers Women maintained their winning streak in the league despite having to travel to Walsall Queens with several players missing. A combination of injuries, illnesses and cancelled trains meant that there were only seven fully fit players available for selection, plus Sarah Round. Round was able to play but although it was tempting at times, Coach Round opted not to put her on court to protect a minor injury.

The ‘magnificent seven’ started the game well and established an early lead, but Walsall’s combination defences disrupted MK’s normal offenses and proved effective. At the other end of the floor, Walsall shot well from long range and the Breakers were guilty of not putting more pressure on the shooters. During the first period, Courtney Gray and Jordan Elliott-King scored well and Vanessa Obanor was rewarded with several trips to the free throw line after some strong drives and putback attempts. MK deserved their 25-19 lead, at the end of the first period, but it was clear that it wasn’t going to be an easy game.

Through the second quarter, Walsall continued to shoot well and their triangle-and-two defensive tactic caused problems for the Breakers and limited the team to just 13 points. With a restricted line-up, Coach Round had asked his players to play safe on defence to avoid foul trouble in the first half. A consequence of this was the Queens players were able to get shots away and their conversion percentage remained high. They won the second period by 4 points (17-13) and although it felt like they had taken control of the game, it was MK who held the lead at the mid-game break (38-35).

The Breakers players had managed their fouls well in the first half so the instruction at half-time was to dial up the defensive intensity. MK’s on-ball defence became tighter and the off-ball defence was more disruptive. This had the desired effect on Walsall’s shooting percentage and the momentum swung back in MK’s favour. They limited Walsall to 12 points in the third quarter and then just 10 in the fourth.

Through the second half, Queens continued with their combination defences, but their close attention on Jordan Elliott-King and Lauren Dabbs opened up more opportunities for Courtney Gray and Vanessa Obanor. Walsall seemed happy to give MK long-range shooting opportunities and this worked well for the hosts as MK couldn’t convert their attempts. However, in the final phase of the game, one of Walsall’s key players fouled out and another had to leave the court with cramp. In addition to improved shot selection, more aggressive drives into the paint by the MK players resulted in several visits to the free throw line and despite Walsall’s valiant efforts, the Breakers ran the game out with the scoreboard showing 66-58 in their favour.

Reflecting on the game, Coach Round was generally pleased with the game management as the decision to gradually increase the defensive pressure through the game helped with the foul management and by the end of the game, only one of his players had reached three fouls. It was also satisfying to see that all players who entered the game contributed to MK’s total. Vanessa Obanor led the way pouring in 27 points and Courtney Gray scored 20.

MK Breakers Women remain unbeaten in the league, but they know there are some tough tests on the horizon. The hope is that the injured and ill will return to training very soon and the pre-game preparations can return to normal.

The post Breakers Women extend their unbeaten start appeared first on MK Breakers Basketball Club.