Basketball On The Internet.

THEY are opposed tonight but according to the NBL, they are the elite of the league for February.

New Zealand Breakers' dual-championship-winning and 2013 MVP import Cedric Jackson today was named Player of the Month and the man leading Adelaide 36ers, his Semi Final opponent tonight - Joey Wright - is Coach of the Month.

It's back-to-back for Joey but no real surprise given the 36ers' current 10-game winning streak which left them unbeaten through the month.

Their last loss in fact was to the Breakers, Jackson with an outstanding performance in that one, way back to the opening rays of January light.

Let's see which one has the answers tonight at Vector Arena in Auckland.

(And Sssh about the fact February doesn't end til Saturday and has three games to go yet...)

MARK Worthington had a terrific NBL season, particularly the first half, and has won Melbourne United's club MVP award.

Across town at Melbourne Boomers, Tess Madgen again has claimed the WNBL outfit's MVP after an outstanding season.

Congratulations to both star players and also to Perth Wildcats for apparently equalling an alleged world record for 29 consecutive NBL finals appearances, without looking up Maccabi Tel Aviv's run in the Israeli Premier League...

NBL Rankings

This Wk-Prev (Record)

8 (6) HAWKS 6-22 - Year went and finished pretty much as expected.

7 (7) KINGS 9-19 - Devastated by injuries but never down on effort.

6 (8) UNITED 13-15 - Limped across the line with two 3-point escapes.

5 (5) CROCODILES 11-17 - If the club has a future, its finish to the season helped.

4 (4) WILDCATS 16-12 - Not as imposing as last year but well in the mix.

3 (3) BREAKERS 19-9 - Ended regular season with a loss but finals start at 0-0.

2 (2) 36ERS 17-11 - A 10-game winning streak is great form to take into semis.

1 (1) TAIPANS 21-7 - Pacesetter all year and on course for a maiden championship.

SEMI G1 TIPS

WINNING form is good form so Cairns and Adelaide start favourites to come out of their respective Semi Final series on top.

The 36ers won recently in Auckland (win #8 of the 10-win streak) but were taken to the wire by the Breakers. They're fairly even in size and athleticism, even in experience and it was New Zealand which inflicted the Sixers' last loss, and that was in Adelaide.

There's not a lot between them and with Vector roaring, the Breakers will be up for this. If Brock Motum is healthy, the 36ers should sneak home ahead 1-0.

THE Taipans took out the Breakers in NZ last week to close their regular season on an all-time high.

They finished undisputed at the head of the table with an unprecedented 21-7 win-loss ratio and also set a record for staying with the same starting quintet - Scott Wilbekin, Cam Gliddon, Stephen Weigh, Alex Loughton, Matt Burston - for the entire regular season.

Not interrupted by any serious injuries - Corey Maynard exempted - Cairns has had a dream run of its own making and that won't end when it hosts Perth tomorrow night.

WNBL Preliminary Final

SYDNEY was magnificent in how it continued to believe even when it was 18 down in the KO Semi against Dandenong well into the third quarter.

Reigning champion Bendigo was no-where near as impressive after halftime, devastated 44-24 after the break by Townsville as the Fire emphatically marched into its third straight Grand Final.

It's a tough ask of the Flames to win again and in Bendigo to boot but they do have belief, have beaten the champs before and boast the magic of Ro Cox. If the Spirit do not soon remove their heads from their assets, they will be watching the Grand Final on TV next week.

But I expect them to be in Townsville.

WHY did the chicken cross the road?

To weigh Cairns Taipans and Townsville Fire's "minor premiership" crowns.