Late arrival Gary Wilkinson feels he's starting to find his groove again as the New Zealand Breakers seek their first win of the season over NBL leaders Perth.
A two-time title winner with the Breakers, Wilkinson returned to the club four games into the season as the defending champions shook up their roster after a poor start.
The 31-year-old American forward says it's the first time he's come into a season part-way through, so it was a different experience.
"I feel like I'm myself a little bit more now," he said on Thursday.
"I'm starting to be mentally and physically where I need to be to perform at the level I expect of myself."
Wilkinson has top-scored for the Breakers in their past two matches, with 19 and 20 points.
However, his efforts weren't enough to prevent narrow losses on the road to Perth and Melbourne, leaving his team in sixth place with a 4-8 record.
The 95-91 defeat in Perth means the Breakers trail the Wildcats 2-0 in their season series going into game three in Auckland on Friday night.
But they are taking plenty of encouragement by the way they pushed the Wildcats on their home court and it took a James Ennis bucket from a long way back to swing the contest.
"We played them the best they've been played on their home court and took them down to the wire," Wilkinson said.
"It took a big shot, one that doesn't go in nine times out of 10, to really put us away, so I think the series is still wide open."
However, the Breakers will have to find a way of combating Ennis and fellow import Jermaine Beal, who scored 31 and 30 points respectively in that match.
That followed the 29 points Ennis collected against the Breakers when the sides met in Auckland in October.
