McVeigh unstoppable as Snakes beat Breakers

Jack McVeigh showed he's worth every cent and more that brought him to the Cairns Taipans with a career-best 47 points on scintillating shooting for four-point home win despite a late New Zealand Breakers scare.

Having just become a father for the first time with wife Beth, McVeigh was out to make sure it was a night to remember at Cairns Convention Centre on Friday night for him and the Taipans in what doubled as his 200th NBL game.

Even with his 26 points to half-time, though, the Breakers were still clinging to the narrow 43-38 lead going into the break.

But McVeigh turned the game on its head in the third quarter and the Taipans rode that momentum to open up an 11-point lead but the Breakers weren’t done with yet.

They turned up the pressure full-court and the Taipans crumbled with the Breakers taking advantage to get back within four following another turnover under their basket which led to a Rob Baker II lay in with 10.6 seconds left.

They couldn’t quite close the deal, though, with Cairns holding on to win by four with McVeigh putting in the best performance of his 200-game NBL career.

He finished with 47 points on 16/21 shooting from the field, 6/8 from three-point range and 9/9 at the foul line.

He also had eight rebounds and three assists on his way to the best scoring performance for Cairns in a 40-minute NBL game.

Sam Waardenburg (16 points, 10 rebounds, eight assists) and Marcus Lee (15 points) were also important figures in a result that ended the Taipans' run of seven straight losses to New Zealand, and six in a row against the same opponents on their home floor.

It improved Cairns' record to 5-13 and was a significant blow to the Breakers' post-season hopes, sending Petteri Koponen's team tumbling to 7-12.

Sam Mennenga (24 points, eight rebounds), Izaiah Brockington (17 points) and Parker Jackson-Cartwright (12 points, 11 assists) fought hard for New Zealand.

The Breakers' 23-19 quarter-time advantage came on the back of a strong shooting display, as Mennenga and McVeigh traded buckets from the outset.

Tai Webster caught Cairns guard Lachlan Barker high with a stray elbow in a second-quarter flashpoint and tempers briefly threatened to boil over.

McVeigh's 26 first-half points on 11/12 shooting helped the Taipans erase an early nine-point deficit to lead 48-43 at the main break.

The only shot McVeigh missed in the first half was a half-court heave on the quarter-time buzzer.

He opened the second half with another triple, but the Breakers' highest-scoring third quarter of the season gave them a 72-69 advantage heading into the final period.

Barker copped another high hit - this time friendly fire from teammate Admiral Schofield under the basket - but carried on.

McVeigh was influential again in the last quarter, nailing multiple threes and setting up Lee for a huge alley-oop before landing two crucial late free-throws as the Taipans held on.

The home side led by 10 points with 1:51 left before withstanding a late Breakers fightback.

Cairns import Andrew Andrews fouled out with just over two minutes left when he caught Jackson-Cartwright high with a stray elbow.

Both teams have quick turn arounds with the Taipans first up on Sunday in Sydney against the Kings while the Breakers remain in Queensland to face the Brisbane Bullets on Monday.

HUNGRY JACK'S NBL SEASON 2025/26

CAIRNS TAIPANS 99 (McVeigh 47, Waardenburg 16, Lee 15)

NEW ZEALAND BREAKERS 95 (Mennenga 24, Brockington 17, Jackson-Cartwright 12)

BOX SCORE