R10 Preview: Brisbane Bullets vs Cairns Taipans

Saturday, February 5, 2022

Nathan Sobey and Tahj McCall go head-to-head as Brisbane and Cairns try to end their losing streaks in NBL22's first Queensland clash.

When: 5.30pm (AEDT), Saturday 5 February 2022

Where: Nissan Arena, Brisbane

Broadcast: ESPN; Kayo; Sky Sports NZ

Who won last time?
Brisbane 101 (Sobey 21, Froling 20, Harrison 13) d Cairns 96 (King 25, Machado 23, Deng 12, Jawai 12) - Round 20 2021, Cairns Pop-up Arena

Mojave King had a breakout game and the Taipans streaked ahead early, looking to add some respectability to a disappointing NBL21 campaign. But a late second-quarter burst got the Bullets within reach at interval and the explosiveness of Nathan Sobey, playmaking of Lamar Patterson and all-around scoring of Harry Froling proved too much in the end.

What happened last start?

The second term proved dire for Brisbane last round, Mitch Creek and the Phoenix powering away and never looking back en route to a 15-point win. Patterson’s brilliant scoring and playmaking sparked a second-half fightback, but that just highlighted the stark difference between the Bullets’ best and worst basketball, a trademark of their NBL22 campaign.

Unfortunately, Cairns’ trademark is fast becoming late-game fade-outs, and the tired Taipans were smashed 19-5 in the final six minutes against Illawarra, making just two field goals and not shooting a single free throw in that time. They also allowed the Hawks to shoot 8/12 on that run home after holding them to 41 per cent in the first 34 minutes.

Who’s in form?

Lamar Patterson – Lamarvellous said he was set for a big season and he wasn’t kidding, currently sitting fourth in scoring and 12th in assists. He’s gone up a level the past two games, putting in 47 points in 59 minutes at 50 per cent from the field and 4/10 from deep.

Keanu Pinder – After a slow start, Pinder has become a key part of coach Adam Forde’s defensive game plan, usually picking up the opposition’s best frontcourt scorer. Against the Hawks, he also added 15 points, 10 rebounds and three o-boards to show he can play both ends.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Keanu Pinder: Man on a mission ? <a href="https://t.co/ze3awjLWbY">pic.twitter.com/ze3awjLWbY</a></p>— Cairns Taipans (@CairnsTaipans) <a href="https://twitter.com/CairnsTaipans/status/1487323022293803009?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 29, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Who needs to be?

Robert Franks – A key decision for Forde is whether to deploy Pinder on Patterson or Franks, but either way the Bullets need ‘Robo’ back to his best. After averaging 19ppg at 46 per cent and 9.9 caroms in his opening seven games, those numbers have shrunk to 7.7ppg, 27 per cent and 6.0 boards in the past three, with just two points and two rebounds against South East Melbourne

Adam Forde – The Taipans again battled manfully before running out of steam against Illawarra, but that wasn’t nearly enough for Forde, who demands exceptional effort from his players and has called out their character in front of media during the week. This is a big gamble with a team playing undermanned, and he needs a massive response on Saturday.

Who’s statting up?

- Against the Phoenix, Patterson scored 26 points at 57 per cent and was -6, while the other four starters combined for 27 points at 32 per cent and were an average of -18.3

- In their four wins, Brisbane average 97.3 points with their starters scoring 71.8. In six defeats that shrinks to 75.8ppg on just 55.2 from their leading quintet

- Cairns’ starters shot 2/18 from three against the Hawks and were outscored 82-45. Their first five rank ninth in scoring (56.7) and field-goal percentage (41%), 10th in three-point makes (5) and percentage (25%), and commit more turnovers (11.4) than any other starting group

- The Taipans are -41 in the second halves of their four losses, and their season record in final periods is one draw and five losses

Who’s matching up?

Nathan Sobey v Tahjere McCall – Could fans ask for anything better than this match-up? Two of the most aggressive, athletic two-way guards in the NBL go head-to-head with McCall in superb form, but Sobey desperately trying to rediscover his brilliant NBL21 form.

Tahj has averaged 17.5 points and 7.5 assists in his past two outings while getting to the foul line 18 times. Sobey has managed just 13ppg at 33 per cent and 3.0 dimes the past three games with a total of 12 free throws. In Brisbane’s last win he got to the stripe 13 times.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Sobez Splash.<br><br>Nissan Arena and the <a href="https://twitter.com/BrisbaneBullets?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@BrisbaneBullets</a> are alive ?<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBL22?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBL22</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/ESPNAusNZ?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ESPNAusNZ</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/kayosports?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@kayosports</a> <a href="https://t.co/6WEaQTBVKJ">pic.twitter.com/6WEaQTBVKJ</a></p>— The NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1487372297082003457?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 29, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Who’s talking the talk?

The season’s first Queensland clash comes at a crucial moment, with Cairns on a two-game losing streak and the Bullets having lost three on the bounce by a total of 41 points.

With both teams in danger of losing touch with the top three, their coaches are searching for answers, yet while identifying the problem is one thing, finding solutions is another.

“It's definitely not hard to pinpoint, I know exactly where it is,” Snakes boss Adam Forde said.

“It's nothing to do with the personnel, because we’re not a team of plumbers and electricians, we've got guys that have played at the elite level their entire life.”

While Brian Goorjian issued a warning to the NBL about the Taipans’ potential once they regain Scott Machado, Mirko Djeric and Kouat Noi, Forde believes the issue is deeper.

“I appreciate Goorj for the kind words, but we need to know what it takes to win now,” he said.

“The things that we need to address isn’t anything to do with who's in or out, and we (need to) nip that in the bud and put all our cards on the table, because you can sit here and say wait til Kouat’s back, wait til Mirk’s back, wait til Jordan’s back, wait til Scott’s back, what happens then when you're losing? What’s your excuse then?”

One of Cairns’ biggest issues has been turnovers, and in trying to fix that he inserted composed Kiwi Jarrod Kenny into the starting line-up against the Hawks in place of defensive gun Keanu Pinder.

“I don’t know what it is after tonight, but per 100 possessions we’re eight points better with JK on the court,” Forde said.

“So it was a two-part. I got after Keanu for what he did in South East, but it was also just a numbers thing.”

Nek minute. Numbers things don’t always work out on the floor, and Kenny was a game-worst -23 and Illawarra’s starters destroyed the Taipans defence.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">ANTONIUS CLEVELAND IN CAPITALS.<br><br>?? <a href="https://twitter.com/ac_uno1?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ac_uno1</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBL22?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBL22</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/ESPNAusNZ?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ESPNAusNZ</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/kayosports?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@kayosports</a> <a href="https://t.co/sS8t1570Zh">pic.twitter.com/sS8t1570Zh</a></p>— The NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1487340114305220611?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 29, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Coach James Duncan is having similar issues finding solution to the Bullets’ inconsistencies, which week in, week out he attributes to his team’s defence.

“Our focus on the details and our purpose to try and stop people, it wasn’t consistent enough, which is what we've been dealing with,” he said.

“They were able to get shots that we talked about in the scout and walk through, the focus wasn’t there, the energy wasn’t there and that hurt us.”

What has emerged across the season, however, is that opposition scoring has remained steady – 87.2ppg in losses compared to 89.3 in wins – whereas the offence is the real rollercoaster, their six-point final quarter against SE Melbourne the ultimate low.

Their scoring droughts, and the drop from 97.3ppg in Ws to 75.8 in defeat has forced Duncan to look deeper into the cause, and a consistent issue has emerged.

The Bullets average 12 turnovers per game in wins compared to 17.3 in their losses, never having more than 14 in a W, not having less than 15 in an L.

“It’s like putting your hand on the stove a number of times and getting burnt on it and getting burnt on it, hopefully sooner or later you're going to learn from that, we just haven't learned the ultimate lesson,” Duncan said.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Already 2 mins into the second half and Rowdy is on 6 points ?<br><br>? Tune in on <a href="https://twitter.com/ESPNAusNZ?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ESPNAusNZ</a> via <a href="https://twitter.com/kayosports?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@kayosports</a> or <a href="https://twitter.com/Foxtel?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Foxtel</a> <a href="https://t.co/JW2TeDrP2l">pic.twitter.com/JW2TeDrP2l</a></p>— South East Melbourne Phoenix (@SEMelbPhoenix) <a href="https://twitter.com/SEMelbPhoenix/status/1487367376366555136?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 29, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

“When we take care of the ball we put ourselves in a position to win games, we get more shots at the rim, but there’s just times when our focus drops and we get loose with it.

“It’s obviously talked about and on video, we chop up the video and show them, but it’s something we have to improve on if we want to put ourselves in a position to win games.”

The challenge for Brisbane is their starting point guard is a combo guard, their starting two-man is a small forward and they only have one quality NBL guard off the bench.

The injury and subsequent lack of impact from import Isaiah Moss has hurt, leaving Duncan lacking weapons to break pressure and make plays when the defence focuses on Sobey and Patterson.

That’s been exacerbated by Robert Franks’ three-game drought, and his offensive struggles resulted in a woeful two-rebound effort against the Phoenix, the Bullets smacked 15-6 on second chance points as a result.

“I think it was just he missed a few shots and couldn’t get himself rolling,” Duncan said.

“I think if he’s able to get a few steals and get a few rebounds and impact the game in another way the ball will fall for him.”

It all sets up a battle of two desperate Queensland teams, and coach Forde has drawn a line in the sand his team needs to respond to.

“The (COVID) break hasn’t been good and we have regressed, and it’s disappointing now that things will start to creep in when you lose,” he said.

“Everyone’s enjoying themselves when you win a few, your test of character and the foundation we’re trying to build, this is when you see what your worth is, when you’ve lost again at home, so it’s going to be an interesting week.”