Kuol, Deng Fire Snakes to Big Win over Bullets

The undermanned and embattled Cairns Taipans have snapped a five-game losing streak against the Brisbane Bullets on the back of 52 points from Bul Kuol and Majok Deng to claim the Sunshine Stoush 102-94 at Nissan Arena on Saturday.

Already missing star import Scott Machado (heel), Mirko Djeric (calf) and Kouat Noi (knee), the Snakes lost former Boomers centre Nate Jawai through an adductor injury heading into this clash. 

Both sides were looking to snap three-game losing streaks and the Taipans simply wanted it more having been challenged publicly by coach Adam Forde coming into the contest.

Rookie Bul Kuol blasted Cairns home with eight three-pointers on his way to 26 points. It was a remarkable performance in his seventh NBL game going 8/10 from beyond the arc.

Majok Deng was also fearless with 26 points, four rebounds and three assists while Tahjere McCall controlled the match and flirted with a triple double with 19 points, eight rebounds and six assists. 

Cairns coach Adam Forde said he would "definitely take it" despite the defensive issues, but revealed that Kuol had not even been part of the club's plans after a disappointing pre-season.

"I had a chat with him after the Blitz.. I told Bul after the Blitz that I was not happy with a couple of key areas," he said.

"The reality is, especially in this game, if we were full strength then Bul would have registered a few DNPs or maybe a couple of minutes off the bench, I don't know, that is how I felt after the pre-season.

"Here we are, down a lot of bodies and with that you can get opportunities. No pun intended, but he has taken the bull by the horns. He has been fantastic."

Forde said the injured brigade would be assessed this week but would not be rushed back. 

"I am confident because I know the guys that are filling the void are getting the job done," he said.

Brisbane came into the match missing Olympian Nathan Sobey (knee) while Anthony Drmic, Jack Salt and Max Mackinnon were all scratchings because of COVID protocols. It was evident on the court as they looked rudderless for long stretches of the game, but given the Taipans absentees, it's hardly an excuse.

Perhaps most telling was Robert Franks (22 points, six rebounds) had connected on 6/8 for 14 points in the first term but barely saw the ball in the last three quarters. He also sent a scare through the Bullets camp when he appeared to injure his knee in the dying minutes.

While the Taipans will be celebrating their first road win of the season, the Bullets have plenty of soul searching to do. Four consecutive losses has seen them slip down the #NBL22 ladder and losing touch with the top four.

One bright light was Isaiah Moss (11 points including two triples) who had his most productive game in Bullets colours after a frustrating season with a hamstring injury and COVID protocols. 

Lamar Patterson toiled for his 16 points, five rebounds and three assists while Jason Cadee stepped in admirably at point guard with 15 points and five assists.

Even with Jawai sidelined, the Bullets were hammered on the glass, surrendering 47 rebounds including 21 offensive boards. They leaked over 100 points and gave up 14 turnovers and 22 second chance points.

Brisbane Bullets coach James Duncan said that effort and defence were lagging and urged his players to dig deep and find more intensity to arrest the losing slide.

"The biggest thing that I am disappointed with ... teams that play defence make playoffs and win consistently, that is just the bottom line," he said.

"If you give up 102 points, that is not getting it done. It is back to the drawing board and having an understanding from the guys, we need to defend and we need to defend at a high level.

"Everyone from the starters to the bench needs to be willing to dig deep and do that."

Duncan refused to blame the absence of Sobey and the other players for the loss, saying it is the responsibility of the remaining squad members to lift.

"When you have a number of players on the team, everybody scratching and clawing for minutes, when you have guys go down with injury and COVID, this is the opportunity to step up and impact the game in a positive way," he said.

"That wasn't the case this evening. We will start over and prepare for Adelaide and Sydney which will be a tough task for us."

Sobey will be assessed during the week but is expected to return to action on Friday against the 36ers.

The understrength Taipans kept Brisbane scoreless for the opening two minutes while Bul Kuol nailed a long-range shot to help his side to a 5-0 start. Majok Deng fired from the three-point line as well, and when Kuol hit another long-range shot the visitors had pushed their lead out to 10. 

Robert Franks was keeping his side in the hunt, but the energy from the Taipans was suffocating the Bullets. Cairns piled on 24 points in six minutes and Bullets coach James Duncan dropped his usually distinguished demeanour to deliver an all-time spray at his misfiring charges. 

The signs looked ominous for Brisbane who trailed by as much as 13, but a 14-point haul from Franks and a buzzer-beating triple from Jason Cadee from the Nissan Arena car park meant the Bullets only trailed 30-25 at quarter-time.

The Taipans' defence transferred in the second quarter to the offensive end as the three-pointers continued to rain down on Brisbane. Cairns threatened to skip out to a huge advantage again but Cadee was keeping them honest with a series of tough plays and long bombs. 

Then it all started to fall apart for Cairns. Four turnovers, a scoring drought and lanes opening for Isaiah Moss and Lamar Patterson signalled trouble. By the time the dust settled, the scores were locked at 53-53 at half-time.

While their structures were sputtering, Cairns had the hot hand - especially through Deng who was blasting his side back on top from the three-point line. Anything Deng could do, Moss could match as the Bullets import hit his fourth consecutive shot to put his mark on the match.

The Bullets began to feel the pinch, coughing up the ball with alarming regularity and failing to reel in their defensive rebounds. Cairns could not make hay immediately, only leading by two points at the last break. 

But the dam broke in the early stages of the final quarter as the visitors leapt out to a nine-point advantage.  Brisbane needed something and a five-point run punctuated with a Deng Deng dunk gave the home faithful hope. It wouldn’t last, though, and the Taipans answered Adam Forde's challenge.

The Bullets are now next in action on Friday at home to the Adelaide 36ers while the Taipans are away to the Illawarra Hawks on Saturday.

HUNGRY JACK'S NBL ROUND 10

BRISBANE BULLETS 94 (Franks 22, Patterson 16, Cadee 15)

CAIRNS TAIPANS 102 (Deng 26, Kuol 26, McCall 19) 

BOX SCORE