14-point third quarter from Tom Abercrombie and all but a triple-double from Cedric Jackson propelled the NZ Breakers to a slump-busting victory at the Melbourne Tigers last night.

The runaway 90-79 win ended a run of two straight road defeats by the Australian NBL's defending champions, and did so in emphatic style as the Breakers joined the Perth Wildcats at the top of the table with an 11-5 record.

The game also featured a welcome return to form from CJ Bruton after nearly a month out with knee troubles, with the veteran guard picking up 14 points on five-of-eight shooting

Abercrombie had had a quiet first half as the Breakers trailed by five at the break, but exploded for 14 third-quarter points on five-of-seven shooting to take his team into a seven-point lead (68-61) heading into the final stanza.

Point guard Jackson finished an agonising one rebound short of what would have been an historic triple-double for the Breakers with 11 points, 11 assists and nine rebounds, while former Tiger Daryl Corletto chipped in with a handy 15 points. Big men Alex Pledger and Gary Wilkinson added 11 points apiece (and 15 boards between them) as the Breakers led by as many as 23 in the final quarter.

The Breakers had trailed 40-45 at the half after an indifferent defensive effort which coughed up just too many easy shots for the Tigers, especially for their in-form big man Tragardh (16 points).

But after the break they tightened up their defence, and rode home on the back of a confidence-boosting offensive breakout for a key victory.

NZ Breakers 90 (Thomas Abercrombie 18, Daryl Corletto 15, CJ Bruton 14, Cedric Jackson 11, Alex Pledger 11, Gary Wilkinson 11), Melbourne Tigers 79 (Cameron Tragardh 22, Ayinde Ubaka 17, Liam Rush 16, Benny Lewis 10). 1Q: 26-27; HT: 40-45; 3Q: 68-61.