That was the feeling tonight at the North Shore Events Centre as the defending Australian NBL champion Perth Wildcats came within a whisker of inflicting just the second home defeat of the season on the Breakers.

In the end the Kiwi club shook off some refereeing howlers and snuck off with a 82-79 victory to extend their record to 17-3 and drop the sinking Cats - losers of five of their last six games - to a vulnerable 13-10.

The win extended the Breakers' 2011 winning streak to seven - the second best in club history - their home record to a stunning 9-1 and means they have now won 12 of their last 13 ANBL matches. They are on some kind of a roll.

But for a side travelling so smoothly - they're now a laydown for the minor premiership - they sure did it tough against a Cats side that had its claws out throughout and revealed a few weaknesses in this Kiwi outfit.

Much as the Tigers had done the week previously, the Wildcats pounded the Breakers on the offensive boards, winning the count there 21-10 and the overall rebounding margin 40-33. That allowed them an extra 17 field goal attempts and played a big part in making this game as close as it was.

In a matchup many predict will be repeated come grand finals time, playoff intensity abounded, with the slumping Wildcats bringing their trademark aggression to a contest that was close all the way till its thrilling conclusion.

But the visitors could not find the buckets they needed to down the stretch, even though they had their chances. When Kirk Penney slotted two pressure free-throws with just under five seconds left it left Perth requiring a trifecta to force overtime, but Drew Williamson's attempt rimmed out.

"I thought it was a game of playoff intensity," said Breakers coach Andrej Lemanis. "It seemed every possession meant something, every hand on a loose ball. This little stretch of games (the Breakers have five matches over the next fortnight) is going to be good for us.

"We're playing good teams. We're going to play the Gold Coast now and they're absolutely desperate as they fight for their lives. It's going to be another playoff environment and it's good for us to experience that going through to the playoffs."

But Lemanis conceded another pummelling on the boards by the league's best offensive rebounding team had been a disappointment.

"It's something we spoke about and worked on all week, but we just didn't handle the aggressive nature with which they went to the glass. When you put bodies on people and they come in and push you in the back you can't whinge to the referee. You've got to actually do something about it

"We need to get better at that because as we go down this last stretch that;s the way it's going to be."

Lemanis said culpability for the team's rebounding shortcomings was a "team thing" and he pointed to the four offensive boards hauled in by Wildcats point guard Damian Martin as an example of that.

Breakers skipper Paul Henare said it had felt like they had taken the Wildcats' best shot to emerge with the second victory over their rivals this season, and answer the 40-point thumping dished out in Perth last time out.

"It was a battle," said Henare. "They really get after it. They're the defending champions and they're fighting for playoff spots as well. Whenever we play Perth it's always a battle, so to get through that game and get a win is pretty satisfying."

Penney and CJ Bruton led the offensive effort for the Breakers, Penney's game-high 21 points coming on seven-of-11 shooting and Bruton's heady 20 on six-of-13. Both made a succession of big baskets in a tight, tight contest.

Gary Wilkinson added 12 points and six boards for the Kiwis, while Mika Vukona snared 10 rebounds in an at-times lone hand against the Wildcats assault.

BJ Anthony was also worthy of mention, the young Tall Black filling in admirably for the crocked Dillon Boucher with a career-best points with nine and four rebounds in just 14 minutes.

The only real disappointment for the Breakers was another poor shooting night from Kevin Braswell who made just one of nine attempts, and added three turnovers to offset four assists.

The Breakers actually did pretty well to take a lead into the half (44-40), considering they were on the wrong side of a series of referee calls that veered between incompetence and something more sinister, and certainly played a part in keeping the Cats in the contest.

Well, that and the Breakers' continued shortcomings on the boards, with the Cats wining the first-half rebound count 25-15, including a 12-3 pounding at the offensive end.

The Breakers once again shot well through the opening half (18/37 FG) and had a good spread of scoring from their usual sharpshooters Penney (10 points), Tom Abercrombie (9), Wilkinson (9) and Bruton (7). Defensively, they had to be happy too with an opposition field goal percentage for the half of just 30 (12/40).

But the Cats kept in it with their tenacious, physical defence, an 8-0 edge in second-chance points and a total of 13 trips to the line (12 converted).

The visitors actually took the lead (63-62) heading into the final period, but much like on their earlier visit they could not make the big plays when the game went on the line.

The Breakers have now completed a 2-1 series edge on the Cats and next step out at the Gold Coast Blaze on Sunday.

NZ Breakers 82 (Kirk Penney 21, CJ Bruton 20, Gary Wilkinson 12) Perth Wildcats 79 (Kevin Lisch 17, Andre Brown 14, Drew Williamson 10, Damian Martin 10). 1Q: 24-22, HT: 44-40, 3Q: 62-63.