Game Preview – Canterbury Rams v Manawatū Jets 11/04/25

The Manawatū Jets have touched down at Christchurch Airport and are ready to take on the defending champs.

Make the most of your Friday night by catching tonight’s game – buy tickets here!

Game Info

Friday, April 11th, 2025.

Rapid League: 6:30 PM. Sal’s NBL: 7:30pm.

Cowles Stadium, Christchurch.

Watch live on Sky Sport 5 (NZ), ESPN3 (USA), FIBA YouTube (Globally)

Buy Tickets!

So, What Are We Dealing With?

Firepower. Yup, it’s as simple as that. While the Rams decided to embrace strength in numbers, the Jets went with a top-heavy model, starting with the league’s leading scorer Corey Webster.

A dangerous shotmaker with split-second decision making, every time Webster steps on the floor he’s a threat to produce. At 36-years-old, Webster carries a great deal of influence over the Jets offense. He’s second in the league in minutes per game and is directly involved as a scorer or facilitator in 44.1% of Manawatū’s shot attempts.

The only player who records more minutes than him is his own teammate Miles Gibson. Gibson has had a terrific start to the Sal’s NBL season, scoring 24.7 points on efficient shooting splits of 51.8%/43.8%. Like Webster, he loves a pull-up jumper and has a counter or two in his bag.

Icing one (or preferably two) of these stars out of the game will go a long way towards securing a Rams victory. That’s easier said than done, as the Jets currently put more points on the board than any other team with an average of 99.8 points per game.

The Hot Topic: C-Web vs T-Britt

Former Rams teammates, Grand Final rivals, and Tall Blacks leaders. It’s fair to say Corey Webster and Taylor Britt have a bit of history.

Webster and Britt are top of the line as far as local talent in this league goes with both of them being devastating shot-makers and high level pick-and-roll operators. Where the team’s differ in roster philosophy, they find a lot of similarity in their point guard play.

Britt is newer to this level of stardom, bursting onto the scene last season as the league’s Most Improved Player and an All Star 5 member. On the other hand, Webster is as experienced as it gets, logging 101 Sal’s NBL games and a further 246 Australian NBL games over his career.

Head-to-head in the Sal’s NBL the past few seasons, they are at a draw in the win-loss department. Individually in their matchups T-Britt is boasting averages of 17.3 points and 6.0 assists, and Webster is posting numbers of 21.0 points and 8.0 assists.

Injury Report (as of 11/04/25)

Canterbury Rams
OUT – Sean Macdonald (injury)
OUT – Marco Sula (not selected)

Manawatū Jets
OUT – Matangirei Hipango (not selected)
OUT – Haikai Lambert (not selected)
OUT – Zavier Pearn (not selected)
OUT – Dominic Pearce (not selected)