RJ Hampton Wins Duel vs. LaMelo Ball as New Zealand Breakers Top Illawarra Hawks

Illawarra Hawks lost 103-72 to the New Zealand Breakers on Thursday despite some solid play from LaMelo Ball at the Spark Arena in Auckland.

The match was billed as a showdown between Ball and fellow American RJ Hampton, and it was Ball who won the scoring battle.

Ball scored 10 points, as well as seven rebounds and four assists and hit on two of seven attempts from three-point range; Hampton scored eight points along with seven rebounds and three assists (0-of-3 from three).

Hampton initially got the better of their contest, though, with a superb block to deny Ball early on:

Ball was withdrawn midway through the one-sided first quarter, which ended with the Breakers up 30-18.

The 18-year-old made a nice pass for an assist to Todd Blanchfield when he returned to the court in the second, and he also converted a free throw after being fouled by Brandon Ashley following a steal.

The home side extended their lead to 54-37 by halftime, though, with Ball having been on court for less than nine minutes.

After he converted another free throw in the third quarter after a foul by Ater Majok, Ball scored twice from beyond the arc in the space of a minute, just his fourth and fifth three-pointers of the season:

A bounce pass from Ball then set up an AJ Ogilvy dunk early in the fourth quarter:

The teenager wowed with a dunk of his own before being withdrawn for the final minutes of the contest:

The defeat was the Hawks' fifth in six NBL games this season, while the Breakers enjoyed their first win of the season in their third game.

Ball's team will host the Perth Wildcats, who have won three of their first four games of the season, on Sunday.