Taipans Hold Off Breakers to Consolidate Second

Spark Arena provided the backdrop for a playoff-type NBL game with the New Zealand Breakers and Cairns Taipans fighting over second spot, and it was the Snakes in charge most of the way to end up winning 85-83.

The two teams might have been bottom two finishers a season ago, but they are fighting over a top two place in NBL23. To add to the intrigue, both were missing their leading scorers with the Breakers minus Barry Brown Jr and the Taipans continuing to miss Keanu Pinder.

It was only fitting that it was a tense, physical and tight match up most of the way too that went down to the final buzzer. 

While the Taipans did maintain an advantage most of the afternoon, they could never put the Breakers away.

Every time Cairns threatened to pull away, New Zealand responded and that didn’t stop with Will McDowell-White draining his seventh three of the game for a career-best performance shaking off a finger injury.

That seventh three made it a one-point ball game with under 10 seconds to play with New Zealand then having possession down two with 4.9 seconds to play. Eventually captain Tom Abercrombie got a good look at the three, but it was short and the Snakes prevailed by two.

What it means is that the Taipans are on a six-game winning streak all of them minus Pinder to be clear in second spot at 16-7. The Breakers have lost three in-a-row to be third at 13-9.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Quick 8?? points for Bul Kuol ?<br><br>Watch live and free on 10 Peach and 10 play | Live on ESPN2 via Kayo Sports + Foxtel ? <a href="https://t.co/A3DI8WQU5G">pic.twitter.com/A3DI8WQU5G</a></p>&mdash; NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1614467476779307010?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 15, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Bul Kuol, DJ Hogg and Tahjere McCall all scored 18 points apiece for Cairns with Shannon Scott adding 10 points, three rebounds and three assists, and Sam Waardenburg seven points and 10 rebounds.

Again Taipans coach Adam Forde didn’t like everything his team did, but to have won six straight without Pinder means he can't be happier on the whole with the Snakes' position.

"I think we tried to do everything we could to try and lose that there at the end," Forde said. 

"New Zealand called a timeout and we wanted to run some key, specific things to close out and on three possessions in-a-row we didn’t do that. 

"It's probably a good time to do it now because those types of errors we don’t want to make come finals time. We'll address those things and they're all definitely workable so I'm just happy for the guys to close out another gritty win."

Will McDowell-White (29 points, five rebounds, five assists, three steals and shooting 7/10 from three) and Jarrell Brantley (25 points, 14 rebounds, five steals) were the stars of the night for New Zealand.

Breakers coach Mody Maor is now going to challenge his team to rediscover not only their best form, but best effort and intensity levels.

"We very nearly stole it. Taipans controlled the game, I'm unhappy with how we played," Maor said.

"We need to go look inside ourselves, go look at tape and investigate to find out why we're not playing the way we need to play. 

"Our level effort and intensity is not what it needs to be, and it's not what it was. We've pulled back and are playing average, like everyone. 

"This was never the plan for this team, average doesn’t get us where we need to go and average doesn’t beat the Cairns Taipans. We need to be a lot better than average."

It was a bright start on the road for the Snakes with DJ Hogg and Tahjere McCall combining for the first four points. Rayan Rupert was aggressive early for New Zealand to open their scoring before Jarrell Brantley added his team's next five points.

Rupert drained a three soon after to keep the Breakers up one but the Taipans worked their way back on top and closing the quarter with strong defence to limit the Breakers to shooting 5/16 helped them lead 21-14 with three balls to Shannon Scott and DJ Hogg.

It was all Bul Kuol to start the second quarter and when he hit a three to open proceedings, coach Mody Maor was livid with his Breakers and called a timeout. It didn't immediately work because Kuol forced a turnover and scored on the breakaway.

He then hit another three ball to push the Cairns lead to 10 and it soon became as much as 13 leading into half-time when McCall hit one from deep as well.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">A CAREER-HIGH 29 POINTS AND KEEPING THE BREAKERS ALIVE ?<br><br>Watch live and free on 10 Peach and 10 play | Live on ESPN2 via Kayo Sports + Foxtel ? <a href="https://t.co/n0N5zx5KJt">pic.twitter.com/n0N5zx5KJt</a></p>&mdash; NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1614488639786078208?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 15, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

The Breakers had nine turnovers up to that point, but were able to steady going into the break and a couple of late threes from Will McDowell-White saw them cut the Taipans advantage to 48-40.

McCall (14), Kuol (13) and Hogg (12) combined for 39 of those 48 Cairns points as they shot 56 per cent as a team with the Breakers greatly benefitting from McDowell-White's 17 points and 13 from Brantley.

It was quite the statement start to the second half from Sam Waardenburg back in his hometown. He drove by Dererk Pardon and threw down a two-handed slam over McDowell-White to put his team back up 10.

Waardenburg converted a three-point play too soon after with Cairns going back up 11 before the Breakers worked back into the contest beginning with consecutive three balls from Brantley.

Lat Mayen was the man to steady the Snakes. Having only scored four points all season and none since November 4, he made two straight baskets for Cairns.

It was the Breakers who finished the quarter with a three from McDowell-White, and then a pair from Cam Gliddon to cut the Taipans advantage to 68-65.

Cairns were back up seven early in the fourth after back-to-back threes courtesy of Ben Ayre and Scott. Out of a timeout, McDowell-White hit his fifth long ball of the game to bring the Breakers back within four.

With just under three minutes to play, McDowell-White hit a spectacular three to bring New Zealand within two, but the Taipans kept having the answers. A tough bucket to McCall and then putback from Kuol had them back on top by six with 1:50 to play.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Sam Waardenburg caught him ?<br><br>Watch live and free on 10 Peach and 10 play | Live on ESPN2 via Kayo Sports + Foxtel ? <a href="https://t.co/K6P2X6XBIM">pic.twitter.com/K6P2X6XBIM</a></p>&mdash; NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1614476656240132097?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 15, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

The game wasn’t done yet. Brantley forced a steal and an unsportsmanlike foul was called on Hogg. Brantley made the free-throws, Pardon scored also soon after and with a minute to play it was a two-point ball game once more.

After two Cairns free-throws to Scott, McDowell-White knocked down his seventh three ball of the game to bring New Zealand back within one. Eventually Kuol's lone free-throw was the last score of the game in a dramatic finish to see the Snakes win by two.

The Breakers remain home to host the Illawarra Hawks on Thursday while the Taipans are back home to host the Tasmania JackJumpers in another massive clash on Friday night.

HUNGRY JACK'S NBL ROUND 15

NEW ZEALAND BREAKERS 83 (McDowell-White 29, Brantley 25, Rupert 7)

CAIRNS TAIPANS 85 (Kuol 18, McCall 18, Hogg 18) 

BOX SCORE