Armstrong heroics not enough against Tasmania

Welcoming back a series of players from injuries, the Taipans rolled out their original starting five for the first time since Round 3 as Pedro Bradshaw returned to the court. Joining the forward in his return was Kyrin Galloway, whilst key piece AK Gak remained in Cairns after hyperextending his knee against Sydney in Round 10.

Despite entering the game as the worst three-point shooting side in the league, Tasmania dialled in early with a series of shots from range to give themselves an early lead.

Trying to feed their hot hands, the JackJumpers continued to put up shots to build their lead – with their eventual misses being cleaned up by Will Magnay, who only gave the hosts more chances to stretch the margin out.

Calling a quick timeout to stop the flow, the Taipans targeted their defence on restricting Magnay and his dominance on the boards – allowing Cairns to go on a run and close the gap.

Channelling their offensive possessions through their point guard, the Taipans worked their way back into the game to only trail by one point at the end of the first term, despite the JackJumpers already hitting six shots from deep.

With Taran Armstrong finishing the opening term with 11 points, the guard took a break with Jackson Makoi stepping onto the court as play resumed. Continuing his strong defensive efforts from last weekend, the young guard worked hard to lock down the Tasmanian shooters – including stopping a fastbreak play in it’s tracks.

Rejoining the court after his own break, Tanner Groves went to work in the paint to combine with Sam Waardenburg as the duo handed the lead to Cairns. Feeling the rhythm, the center dared to try his luck from distance as he drilled the three ball.

Answering themselves, Tasmania turned to former-Taipan Majok Deng to keep them in touch, as the forward worked with Magnay to work the scoreboard over whilst Armstrong put on an offensive show at the other end.

With no-look passes and hard drives to the rim, the guard continued to lead Cairns into the main break with a narrow two-point lead.

HOW DOES HE DO IT 🤯

Taran with the insane pass to Kyrin for the easy bucket!

📲 @cairnstaipans | 📺 @espn pic.twitter.com/TDdC1x3gS3

— Cairns Taipans (@CairnsTaipans) December 5, 2024

Impressing with his best performance since returning from injury, Groves reached the main break with three steals alongside his 11 points, whilst Waardenburg wrapped up his first half with 14 points of his own as the second half began.

Refusing to bow down on his home court, Magnay raised the intensity on the defensive end to restrict the Taipans’ looks as the JackJumpers slowly stretched out a lead – only for the center to be taken out of the game.

Utilising the limited time without Magnay in action, Armstrong and Waardenburg reeled in margin to enter the final quarter trailing by two points as the tight tussle approached its end.

Not afraid of the imposing center, Armstrong repeatedly went to work against Magnay with the Taipan able to breeze by the JackJumper on his way to the basket, slowly ticking the score over as the final minutes approached.

However, as the only Taipan to score across nearly six minutes, the guard was unable to match the Tasmanian’s shooters who hit a series of deep shots to secure the win on their home court.

Continuing his rapid increase in confidence since returning from injury, Taran Armstrong finished his night with a consecutive career high in points – putting up 29 points alongside his three rebounds and three assists whilst once more drawing an impressive eight fouls.

Taran is COOKING 😤

📲 @cairnstaipans | 📺 @espn pic.twitter.com/oY8CH2si6T

— Cairns Taipans (@CairnsTaipans) December 5, 2024

In the front court, Sam Waardenburg and Tanner Groves both wrapped up their nights with 19-points apiece, with the New Zealander also contributing seven boards, six assists, and drawing six fouls himself. Putting up an equal career best in points, the American also grabbed four boards and five steals across the night.

Continuing his dominance on the defensive end, Jonah Antonio drew seven fouls whilst not fouling himself, and ended his night as one of only two Taipans to finish with a positive plus/minus.

“There were guys who left everything they had and dipped into their reserves tank,” said Taipans Head Coach Adam Forde.

“We’ve got some things that we need to fix, especially in that fourth quarter, and that’s pretty much where it’s at – the fourth quarter hits us again.

“We had some really good looks, we had some really good looks at three that didn’t drop for us, and at the other end they capitalised on every offensive rebound. Every offensive rebound they got, they either scored off it or got fouled and were able to score.

The Kenfrost Homes Cairns Taipans will now fly north to face the South East Melbourne Phoenix on Saturday night – walking into John Cain Arena for their fourth and final visit this season. They’ll then return home to host the Perth Wildcats on Saturday 14 December – grab tickets for the 7:00pm game HERE.