A record-breaking NBL debut from Lithuanian sensation Arnas Velicka has steered the Brisbane Bullets to a thrilling 88-85 win over the New Zealand Breakers.
Velicka posted 23 points and 14 assists in Tuesday night's open-air clash at Brisbane's Pat Rafter Arena, to launch the Will Weaver era in style.
The previous most assists by a debutant was 13 by Ken McFadden in 1992 for the now-defunct Hobart Devils.
Hulking Tyrell Harrison (22 points, seven rebounds) was the chief beneficiary of Velicka's playmaking wizardry as the hosts overturned an 11-point deficit.
After Max Mackinnon - son of Bullets legend and 2007 league MVP Sam Mackinnon - coolly netted a pair of free throws with 16.1 seconds remaining for a three-point lead, NZ couldn't capitalise with two bites at the cherry.
Breakers captain Parker Jackson-Cartwright's three-point attempt with 12 seconds left was blocked by Mitch Norton, and he missed another long-range shot to level the scores at the bell, after Velicka missed a pair of foul shots.
Jackson-Cartwright paired 26 points with seven assists, while teammate Dejan Vasiljevic scored 17.
"We know that if we do things the way we practise, we're going to be tough to deal with in minutes 20-40," Weaver said after his debut as Bullets coach.
"[We had] two offensive rebounds at the half and ended up with 15.
"That is an incredible testament to how committed our guys were."
Brisbane jumped ahead 5-0 before struggling to contain the Breakers, who took the lead then extended it to 26-19 at quarter-time.
Vasiljevic continued his hot start to the season with his new team, burying a three-point bomb to extend NZ's advantage to 33-22.
The Bullets closed the gap to 44-37 at halftime but still looked out of sync at both ends.
Vasiljevic nailed his fourth three-pointer without a miss, before Jackson-Cartwright also hit his fourth trey to push the Breakers' buffer back out to 11.
Then Velicka took over, notching a pair of threes, a crafty Euro-honed spin after posting up the smaller Jackson-Cartwright, and a pair of slick assists.
Mitch Norton put Brisbane up 65-63 at three-quarter-time when he hit a triple after an offensive rebound.
Harrison started the final term with three buckets - all from Velicka assists - as the Bullets moved ahead by seven, before holding their nerve down the stretch, confirming the reigning wooden spooners are longer easybeats.
"Rebounding really hurt us, and matching up after rebounding," NZ coach Gordie Herbert said after Brisbane bossed the boards 47-30.
"I think that was a big difference, especially in the fourth quarter."
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