AAP
Two months of heartache are finally over for NBL battlers the Adelaide 36ers after they upset the Sydney Kings 82-64 at home on Sunday.
But it remains to be seen whether 36ers coach Marty Clarke's troubles are behind him.
Clarke savoured Adelaide's first win since their away victory in Perth on November 16 after the 36ers ended an eight-game losing streak.
However, he will still be an anxious man as the 36ers board mulls over his future.
The Adelaide hierarchy met late on Friday to discuss a number of pressing topics including Clarke's tenure, the sale of home court Adelaide Arena and inaugural championship-winning coach Ken Cole's offer to buy the team.
Talks between club chairman Daryl Simmons, directors Paul Finlay and Dean Parker and CEO Leeanne Grantham were continuing over the weekend with the result expected to be known in the coming days.
Clarke has won just 23 of 73 games in two-and-a-half seasons at the helm, including 6-11 this season.
It was the third loss in four games for the Kings (3rd; 10-8).
In contrast, two-time defending champions New Zealand Breakers are on a roll after their second big comeback in four games to down the Crocodiles 82-78 in Townsville on Friday night - their fifth straight win.
The ladder-leading Breakers (13-3) overcame a 15-point halftime deficit to ensure they won all four games on their holiday season road trip since their December 28 visit to Adelaide - the first time they had achieved the feat.
Tom Abercrombie (19 points) helped the Kiwis snap Townsville's five-game winning streak.
"This group has been together a while and has experienced success together - that builds a belief that you're never out of it," Breakers coach Andre Lemanis said.
"We've had these four games on the road and we've been through different things and found different ways to win.
"And with that comes a confidence that no matter what's going on in the team, if we keep playing a certain way we're going to give ourselves at least a chance."
Last-placed Townsville (5-11) did not register a point in the final two minutes of the match as the Breakers finished on a 7-0 run.
"I told the boys after the game that they deserved to win, but you have to play 40 minutes," Townsville coach Paul Woolpert said.
Meanwhile, the Cairns Taipans (5-10) ended a four-game losing run with a dramatic 94-81 over-time win over the Hawks (8-7) at Wollongong on Friday night.
Aaron Grabau's eight-point run for Cairns late in the fourth term turned a six-point deficit into a two-point lead in just seconds before Wollongong's Larry Davidson sent the match into over-time.
But Grabau (22 points) ensured Cairns sealed a much-needed victory, relegating Wollongong to their fourth straight defeat.
"I'm extremely proud of the team. Your character gets revealed when your back is against the wall and the guys came out rather relaxed and confident," Taipans coach Aaron Fearne said.
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