Australia have drawn first blood in the Oceania men's basketball championship, coming from behind to beat New Zealand 70-59 in a high-octane clash in Auckland.
With NBA guard Patty Mills contributing a game-high 20 points, as well as five rebounds and four steals, the Boomers turned around some poor first-half shooting that had them trailing 39-32 at the main break.
It made for a winning return for Boomers coach Andrej Lemanis to the North Shore Events Centre, the home venue of the New Zealand Breakers, whom he guided to their unbroken run of three NBL titles.
With the teams both already knowing they are both bound for next year's World Cup in Spain, the stakes might not have been as high as for a sudden-death qualifier.
But the intensity of the contest lived up to the traditions of trans-Tasman rivalry.
The Tall Blacks, underdogs heading into the two-match series, showed plenty of spirit, with skipper Mika Vukona leading the way.
But when their early shooting accuracy dipped at the start of the third quarter, the Boomers took advantage to move into a lead they wouldn't relinquish.
A seven-point run, including five from Mills, nudged the visitors in front.
Up 54-52 at three-quarter time, Australia lifted a gear in the final quarter to pull away.
David Andersen was a key contributor to their cause, finishing with 12 points and seven rebounds, while Matthew Dellavedova added 11 points.
Corey Webster led the scoring for the home side with 14 points, while Vukona had 11 and eight rebounds.
Earlier, a seesawing first quarter ended in Australia's favour 21-18 thanks to a late three-pointer from Ryan Broekhoff.
But that was to be last points the Boomers scored until almost halfway through the second quarter as their field goal shooting fell to 25 per cent at one stage.
Some tight defence and two long-range buckets from veteran Casey Frank pushed the Tall Blacks in front.
The Boomers finally managed to get going again when Anderson finally replied with his own three-pointer to tie the contest.
But New Zealand finished the half stronger, Vukona providing impetus with two tough two-pointers in a row.
Webster than produced a late flourish, following up a three-pointer with another basket to give the home side a seven-point halftime lead.
The second leg is in Canberra on Sunday.
