An accidental villain of Game 2, Gary Wilkinson emerged as a hero of the decider, guiding the New Zealand Breakers home 79-73 over the Perth Wildcats as they retained their iiNet NBL Championship crown.

After one of the greatest series of all time, the result came down to a desperate final quarter in which Wilkinson simply willed his side ahead with a series of clutch plays.

Fittingly, playoff master CJ Bruton, winning his fifth championship ring, provided the final daggers – a pair of three-pointers in the final moments – that finally broke Perth’s spirit.

Wilkinson, who had gifted the Wildcats the previous game with an “own basket”, led all scorers with 23 points, Bruton had 16 (four triples) and American Cedric Jackson dished 12 assists.

Forward Shawn Redhage had 18 for the Wildcats while Matt Knight was dominant inside with 17. 

Tom Abercrombie got the home crowd on their feet with an early three-pointer, with another from Wilkinson putting the Breakers six in front.

Perth dug in to stay within striking distance, but Bruton gave his side a lift off the bench with five quick points.

By the end of the first quarter the visitors had weathered the Breakers' opening gambit and trailed by just one (21-22).

Knight gave the Cats their first lead of the game with a mid-range jumper and it was their turn to make run, opening a five-point margin midway through the quarter.

Wilkinson responded with a trey, Alex Pledger threw down an alley-oop pass and slotted a couple of free throws to put the champs ahead again.

Knight remedied that situation with a three-point play and at half-time, Perth enjoyed a 41-39 advantage thanks to an efficient 58 per cent from the field, even though they had nothing from the arc.

Wilkinson got the Breakers back up soon after the break, but blew three lay-ups, which combined with Jackson missing three-of-four from the line allowed Perth to stay close.

When Abercrombie tipped in Jackson’s lob in the final seconds of the period, the titleholders led 58-54.

The lead grew to eight points – the biggest of the game – thanks to four points from Pledger, but treys from Kevin Lisch and Cam Tovey had the scores level with 7min 9sec to play.

Wilkinson coaxed in a fadeaway and a one-handed runner for some breathing space, then Bruton hit a crucial trey with 1min 51sec remaining, then another with 55 seconds left to put Perth on the brink.

They had one final chance to get within a basket, but Abercrombie swooped from nowhere to spectacularly block Shawn Redhage's lay-up attempt. 

New Zealand Breakers 79 (Wilkinson 23, Bruton 16, Pledger 13, Abercrombie 12)
Perth Wildcats 73 (Redhage 18, Knight 17, Lisch 15)

Crowd: 9258 at Vector Arena, Auckland