The maturity of Corey Webster has been hailed after the sweet-shooting guard led New Zealand to a 93-84 World Cup qualifying win over South Korea in Seoul.
The Tall Blacks avenged their loss to the same opponents in Wellington in the opening round of qualifying in November and ensured they remain top of their four nation group.
They are guaranteed to advance to the next stage, regardless the results of their two final group games at home to winless Hong Kong and China in four months.
The clash with China in Auckland on July 1 should determine the group winners.
It was a second performance of quality on the road for coach Paul Henare's team, three days after their upset win over China.
They once again employed smothering all-court defence and a high-tempo offence led by Webster, who unleashed a game-high 30 points.
That included six-from-nine from the three-point line and six assists.
Support came from three big men, with Isaac Fotu (18 points, 11 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals), Alex Pledger (12 points, 10 rebounds) and Rob Loe (11 points) responding to Henare's rotations.
United States-born Ricardo Ratliffe provided more of a lone hand for the hosts, scoring 29 points and pulling down 11 rebounds.
Down by three after the first quarter, the visitors dominated the middle of the game, with Henare delighted by the follow-me attitude of Webster, particularly when his younger brother and fellow-guard Tai Webster ran into foul trouble.
"I have been hugely impressed and was very proud of seeing a guy like Corey Webster continue to grow," Henare said.
"His on-court ability is phenomenal but he has matured with what he does with the ball in hand. Thirty points on 18 shots is highly efficient and six assists on the stat line is a real sign of his growth and maturity as a player."
Webster has had his share of off-court problems in New Zealand and left the Breakers last year under a cloud before signing for an Israel club.
Henare says the players have nothing but respect for the 29-year-old.
"Where I was really proud to see him grow was in his leadership in the locker room, just simple messages he was giving at important times, before games and leading into games and throughout games as well."
With the game won, Henare took the chance to give a Tall Blacks debut to 18-year-old Dan Fotu, who joined brother Isaac on court for the first time at any competitive level.
Dan Fotu replaced Finn Delany, who suffered a nasty head clash which required eight stitches.
NZN