Brisbane stays alive with win in Cairns

Have the Cairns Taipans played the Brisbane Bullets back into form? Time will tell, but the travelling Bullets did enough to put away the Snakes 101-96 to keep their season alive and hopefully put to bed the horrors of their past two games.

Beltings at the hands of the South East Melbourne Phoenix and Melbourne United had the Bullets season on death's door. It remains on life support, but this win against Cairns ensures there is still a pulse.

Brisbane has been guilty of turning momentary lapses into horror scoring streaks against them and they didn't really show signs they have arrested that problem, surrendering an 11-0 run and several other scoring streaks in this match.

At their worst, the Bullets looked directionless and rudderless. At their best, Brisbane reduced Cairns to spectators. They would have had their supporters on tenterhooks in the final two minutes.

Jordan Ngatai drilled a triple and Venky Jois followed up with a bucket that cut the margin to just three points with almost two minutes left on the clock. 

Both Ngatai and Jois had chances to at least level the scores as neither side could find that killer blow. In the end, the Bullets fell over the line in a win that was anything but convincing. 

It would be a frustrating win, but an essential win nonetheless that keeps the Bullets in the hunt for the last finals berth on offer. 

The Bullets trio of big men were the catalyst for the win, with Harry Froling finishing with 20 points and eight boards in one of his best performances of the season. 

Tyrell Harrison was impressive in limited minutes with 13 points and six rebounds while Matt Hodgson was routinely able to break down the double team to end the game with 12 points and seven boards.

Newly minted Boomer Nathan Sobey was sublime with 21 points and eight assists, but the Bullets guards were by-and-large disorganised and again relied on blasting their way out of trouble at times. 

Fatigue was a factor for the Bullets, who were playing their sixth game in 13 days, and coach Andrej Lemanis was pleased with the effort his side brought to the table.

"It was always going to be a really big test," he said.

"We were coming off a couple of losses at the back end of the season on a touch schedule, it was going to be tough and challenging. There were some major obstacles tonight, but we were still able to get the appropriate effort to win the game."

Lemanis singled out their 13 offensive rebounds and 20 second chance points as proof of the effort put in by his fatigued charges, especially the bench which stepped up to provide 42 points.

Fabijan Krslovic was missing for the Taipans, so the plan was to break them down with the Bullets bigs, with Lemanis praising Froling for his efforts.

"Someone like Harry, who has had some time this year when he hasn't played much, come out with a performance and a presence at the right times to make Cairns pay (was impressive)," he said.

Froling also reserved praised for Harrison, who laid the platform for the win.

"Credit to him, he had 13 and 6 playing just 14 minutes. He got us going in the first half, I am happy with how he played, and we enjoy playing together."

Cairns came out to play in what had meant to be their last match at the Pop-Up Arena, but ultimately lacked the weapons to secure the upset.

It has been a rocky rookie season for Next Star Mojave King but he delivered his best performance for the Taipans. The 18-year-old had a career night for the Snakes with 25 points on a clip of 60 per cent from the field, effective from range and in the paint.

Import Scott Machado flirted with a triple-double on his way to 23 points, six rebounds and 11 assists while tall timber Nathan Jawai (12 points, seven rebounds) and Majok Deng (12 points, three rebounds) were strong contributors.

Cairns coach Mike Kelly was disappointed with the loss, but full of praise for the effort, shown by his charges.

"I thought (the effort) was really good, we got to a point where had a shot to tie the game," he said.

"The group was attacking, and we ended up with a wide open shot. I was really happy after getting down by 11, bringing that thing back and giving ourselves a shot."

Kelly also praised King for his efforts in his career night.

"He came out ready. It was really great to see him knock down shots and attack the rim, he did a great job," Kelly said.

"This is Mo getting better. This is Mo playing 29 minutes and getting those opportunities and making those shots. It is a progression. The other end is a progression as well. Learning how to defend ... it has been a great progression to watch, and he is only going to keep getting better."

King said he didn't know what the future holds in terms of the NBA draft or potentially returning for Cairns in the NBL, but he knows he had a lot of fun tonight.

"It felt good, I am just trying to bring the energy," he said.

"I am not sure what my plant are yet, I will just keep working hard as I can to be the best player I can be."

King quickly put his stamp on the game with a triple in the corner and a statement dunk that was dished courtesy of a Machado steal, showing the Taipans had come to play.

The Bullets' recent habit of turning the ball over travelled with them to Cairns and the Taipans punished them, a Jordan Ngatai triple opening up a six-point lead.

Not even a Machado offensive foul could slow the Snakes' roll as the lead pushed out to 17-9 off another King dunk and Brisbane was in early trouble. The Bullets clawed their way back though to only trail 25-24 at the first break.

A couple of triples from Lamar Patterson and Sobey kept the Taipans honest and the would-be finalists were showing some signs of life. The Bullets lost the plot offensively though, turning down open looks for wild heaves from long range that were not connecting.

At the other end Jawai was muscling his way to the basket at will and a three-point play helped his side to a 41-33 lead and the misfiring Bullets were on the rack again.

The Taipans pulled off an 11-0 run to take ascendency, but just as the Bullets looked shot they tore off an 11-0 run of their own to take the lead. Jason Cadee heaved the ball from the Cairns Esplanade to end the quarter to splash an unlikely bucket and give his side a 52-47 lead at half-time.

Mike Kelly was using the same zone defence that troubled the Perth Wildcats last round but the Bullets were able to pick holes in after the main break. While Cairns peeled off the first five points, Harry Froling and BJ Johnson combined to give their side a 74-67 lead - their biggest of the match.

A freak Machado basket off a bump late in the quarter helped keep his side within reach, but it was Brisbane leading 81-75 at the final break.

Once again the score began to seesaw, Brisbane pushing the lead out to nine and Machado and Jawai striking to cut it back to four. The Bullets were getting the easier looks, though, and it became difficult to see where a Cairns win would come from.

That was until the Ngatai and Jois show that forced a nervous finish. In the end, though, Sobey was able to ice the game from the free-throw line.

HUNGRY JACK'S NBL ROUND 20

CAIRNS TAIPANS 96 (King 25, Machado 23, Deng 12, Jawai 12)

BRISBANE BULLETS 101 (Sobey 21, Froling 20, Harrison 13) 

BOX SCORE