Muttiah Muralitharan claimed three wickets, but some late resistance helped New Zealand stave off a damaging collapse in Galle.
Muralitharan had nightwatchman Jeetan Patel (26) trapped leg before in the morning session and followed that up with the wickets of Tim McIntosh (69) and Jacob Oram (12) later in the afternoon.
Fast bowler Thilan Thushara picked up the wickets of Ross Taylor (35) and Brendon McCullum (one) to set Black Caps pulses racing but Jesse Ryder's 42 and Daniel Vettori's unbeaten 33 helped New Zealand stay afloat.
New Zealand were 281 for eight, still 171 runs behind Sri Lanka's first innings score of 452 when bad light brought a premature end to the day's play.
Iain O'Brien was unbeaten on three at the close.
The Black Caps had batted bravely through the morning session and for much of the second, thanks largely to a cautious performance from McIntosh.
Once the opener was removed New Zealand wickets fell at an alarming rate.
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Resuming from his overnight 36, McIntosh had survived a vicious short-ball attack from Thushara in a rain-shortened morning session.
The opener had put on 49 for the third wicket with Patel when Muralitharan claimed the nightwatchman for his first victim.
Patel had rocked back to defend a delivery which went straight on, but instead was trapped in front.
Taylor then joined McIntosh and the innings gained some momentum, despite the pair being subjected to a tough examination from Muralitharan and fellow spinner Ajantha Mendis.
Taylor's innings was fortuitous, as he was dropped by Mahela Jayawardene at slip when on 15 and again by Nuwan Kulasekara at deep square leg on 27, Mendis the unfortunate bowler on both occasions.
Taylor's innings, however, finally ended when Thushara was brought into the attack for the first time in the afternoon session.
Thushara struck almost immediately, getting the middle-order batsman to feather an edge which was neatly snaffled by wicketkeeper Prasanna Jayawardene.
McIntosh, who had thumped Mendis for a boundary in the morning to raise his half-century, then fell to Muralitharan although replays suggested the off-spinner was lucky with his appeal.
McIntosh was rapped on the pad by a delivery which spun in sharply as he attempted to defend off the front foot and was given out although he was hit outside the line.
McIntosh's stay at the crease spanned 229 deliveries and was dotted with six boundaries and a six.
There was no doubt about McCullum's dismissal though, as Thushara pegged the wicketkeeper batsman's middle stump back as the batsman attempted a tentative push.
From 180 for three, New Zealand slid to 195 for six and there was more to come from Muralitharan.
The off-spinner secured another lucky verdict to send back Oram, a googly which brushed the pad and popped up to substitute fielder Malinda Warnapura at short leg.
It's all about numbers
Replays showed no bat was involved.
After Oram's dismissal, the Black Caps needed a further 30 runs to avoid the follow-on, a task they accomplished through Ryder (42).
He helped the Black Caps past the mark with a boundary off Thushara just after the second new ball was taken, but Kulasekara ended the batsman's resistance when he had him bowled via an inside edge.
Vettori put on 36 for the eighth wicket with Ryder, and went on to offer stiff resistance until stumps were drawn.
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