Phoenix outshoot Cairns in high-scoring battle

Facing a Phoenix lineup missing star guard Derrick Walton Jr, the Taipans rolled out their main starting unit with none of their own players ruled out with injuries.

Opening the night by putting up the first three points of the night, Sam Waardenburg set the tone early for Cairns – following up the points with two assists, a block and a steal.

Sharing the scoring around, four Taipans hit the box score within the opening five minutes – expanded to five once AK Gak was injected, with the forward scoring back-to-back baskets within 30 seconds of entering the game.

Better get out of the way ⚠️

AK slams it DOWN!

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

— Cairns Taipans (@CairnsTaipans) January 14, 2025

After Cairns initially held a five-point lead, the Phoenix shot back – draining repeated triples to flip the script on their hosts.

Dominating the glass, South East Melbourne created extra chances to gain control of the contest, with a tip in on the buzzer bringing the margin to five points as the first term ended, with Matt Hurt notching up 10 points in only six minutes of action.

Rotating through nearly their entire bench within the first quarter – with as many as four substitutes per stoppage – only Taran Armstrong and Gak were able to hit more than one field goal, whilst Joe Wieskamp quickly joined Hurt in the double digits.

Returning to action by stretching the margin out to 11 points, South East Melbourne continued to build on their work on the glass as they nearly doubled their hosts in the rebounding column, with most of their boards coming on the offensive end.

However, the Taipans imports fired back, drilling three consecutive shots from deep to tie the game, with a layup by Gak handing them the lead.

As the high-scoring contest reached its main break with a combined 117 points scored in 20 minutes of action, the Taipans held on with a one-point lead, with both Pedro Bradshaw and Armstrong notching up 12 points.

Trading blow for blow once play resumed, neither team was able to stretch more than a bucket ahead of each other, with the Phoenix only being able to inch ahead in the dying minutes of the quarter through the guard duo of Nathan Sobey and Ben Ayre.

Some Kyle magic finds the gap 🪄

And Tanner takes full advantage 😮‍💨@cairnstaipans | 📷 @espn pic.twitter.com/BQ7hlB7vLQ

— Cairns Taipans (@CairnsTaipans) January 14, 2025

Utilising their extra 14 chances earned off their efforts on the boards, South East Melbourne entered the final 10 minutes with a narrow four-point lead – a lead they were quick to build on.

After finding success in the paint earlier in the contest, the Phoenix returned to the interior – extending their lead off the back of Nathan Sobey and Hurt’s work who contributed over half of their points.

Refusing to concede, Armstrong utilised their tactics to repeatedly drive to the basket – drawing multiple fouls and sending himself to the free throw line three times in the final quarter.

However, the Phoenix guards kept pushing the pace, whilst Hurt continued to dominate on his way to 33 points, and Sobey reaching 26 points himself on their way to the win.

Leading the efforts on the offensive end, Sam Waardenburg ended his impressive night with 22 points, five rebounds, five dimes, two steals, one block, and five drawn fouls, whilst fellow forward Pedro Bradshaw wrapped up with 16 points, five boards, an assist and three steals.

Reaching 20 points himself, Taran Armstrong also pulled down four boards along with six assists, whilst fellow starters Rob Edwards and Tanner Groves also reaching double digits, and 10 Taipans troubling the score keepers.

“We gave up way too many points, and in the first half we got absolutely annihilated on the offensive rebounds,” said Taipans Head Coach Adam Forde.

“The boys did a good job in the second half, but there was a lot of damage done – Jordan Hunter pretty much controlled the glass for the entire first half, and we paid the price.

“Right now it’s about trying to get a least a little bit of momentum, and I give credit to the guys because they feel it, regardless of if we’re on this 15-game slide, or now trying to find ways to win at home. That’s the level of care amongst the group, and so with everybody being part of it, that’s important because we’re on this journey together.”

“I felt a bit sluggish, especially to start. It was a quick turnaround and we’ve been pretty fortunate with our schedule so far and we haven’t really had to combat that too much, but this stretch is going to be brutal,” explained Taipans guard Taran Armstrong.

“As an individual you always have things to play for – whether it’s your own personal pride or whatever – but I really like playing with this team regardless of where we’re at.

“We’ve got a bunch of fun guys to play with and I enjoy spending time with them, but as a competitor it’s like you’re not really thinking about that at the moment – it’s just what’s in front of me and trying to play as hard as I can.”

The Kenfrost Homes Cairns Taipans will now prepare for their Summer Shootout game against their Queensland rivals, before returning home for a Sunday afternoon fixture. They’ll face the Adelaide 36ers in the annual IFYS Blackout game – tickets for the 3:30pm clash are available HERE!