Bruce and the Cairns Taipans will take on the New Zealand Breakers in the NBL grand final series starting on Friday night in Cairns.

The series is played in a best of three format, with game two in New Zealand on Sunday and game three to be played in Cairns on Friday next week if required.

No player hailing from the Wimmera has ever won an NBL or WNBL championship. Bruce’s Horsham compatriot Mitch Creek came close with the Adelaide 36ers in the NBL last season, losing a tough three-game series to the Perth Wildcats.

Horsham basketball coach Owen Hughan led the now-defunct Coburg Giants to 37 wins and 17 losses in 1984 and 1985, but did not win a championship.

Melissa McClure had success with Perth in the WNBL and appeared in the 1998-99 grand fi nal, losing to the Australian Institute of Sport.

Bruce is the latest Wimmera player to attempt the feat. He said he was ready for the challenges of the grand final series.

“I’m excited and looking forward to this whole experience,” he said.

“Playing in the first semi-final, I got a feel for how finals basketball is, but a grand final will be an even bigger  step up.

“There are naturally always some nerves, but this is why we play basketball and I’ll be trying to help the team win in any way I can.”

Bruce has had his best individual season to date.

He was initially placed on the Taipans’ development squad in 2012-13, but worked his way onto the main list and has appeared in all but one game this season.

He has averages of 3.6 points and nearly two assists a game off the bench. 

The Taipans have played New Zealand four times this season and won three times.

Bruce said the Breakers would hold no fear for Cairns, despite winning three of the past four NBL championships.

“We beat them three out of the four times we played and we’ve beaten them twice on their home court so that gives us confidence,” he said.

“I think us having home court advantage will definitely be a factor too – across the league any team would be confident playing on their home court. 

“We’re a young group so experience in finals might not be there, but we have confidence in our ability, which is what has got us here. 

“We have the best point guard in the league in Scottie Wilbekin and this time last year he was playing in front of nearly 100,000 people in college. 

“Pressure situations like that don’t really faze him and I think that filters down through the rest of the group as one of our leaders.”