Game Preview: Taipans v Breakers

HoopsFest is upon us. The Kenfrost Homes Cairns Taipans head west for a heavyweight clash in Perth against Parker Jackson-Cartwright, Sam Mennenga and the New Zealand Breakers.

Chasing a third straight win, the Taipans hit the road off the back of a nail-biting Queensland derby victory over bitter rivals Brisbane, powered by an Andrew Andrews and Jack McVeigh masterclass.

Adding another layer, Kyrin Galloway is set to play game 150 in the league, a fitting stage for a forward who began his NBL journey with the New Zealand Breakers back in 2020.

‍Where and When

Saturday, 17 January at RAC Arena, Perth (6:00pm AEST)‍

How to Follow

Watch: Live on ESPN

Live Updates: Taipans X

Stats: Box Score‍

What’s Already Happened

Recent Results
Melbourne United (92) v Cairns Taipans (93)
Cairns Taipans (88) v Brisbane Bullets (83)

New Zealand Breakers (62) v Sydney Kings (103)
Illawarra Hawks (96) v New Zealand Breakers (101)

The Taipans dug deep to secure a gutsy 88-83 win over the Brisbane Bullets in a rescheduled Queensland derby at the Cairns Convention Centre last Monday night.

Cairns burst out of the gates, racing to a 28-16 first-quarter lead as Sam Waardenburg opened perfectly from the field with 11 points on 5-5 FG shooting and Kyrin Galloway set the tone with aggressive, decisive offense.

The Taipans’ fast start carried into a controlled first half, pushing the margin out to 16 and taking a 47-35 advantage into the break.

Brisbane responded after halftime, turning the contest into a scrap with repeated trips to the free-throw line to win the third quarter and close to 68-62 at three-quarter time. Cairns then faced a major challenge when Waardenburg went down with an ankle injury in the third, forcing the home side to reshuffle.

The final quarter slowed into a physical grind. Brisbane levelled at 81-81 late, but Andrew Andrews delivered the finishing touches with clutch buckets and back-to-back free throws in the final seconds, while Jack McVeigh iced it with a late steal and the final score.

McVeigh led with 25 points, Andrews posted 18 points and 13 assists and Galloway added 19 points and five rebounds.

Bullets duo Hunter Maldonado (31 points, five assists and six rebounds) and Terry Taylor (22 points and eight rebounds) were impactful for the visitors despite the loss.

Last Time They Met
Last time out, Taipans leading scorer Jack McVeigh unleashed a career-high 47 points to drag his side to a gripping 99-95 win over the Breakers at the Cairns Convention Centre.

Breakers big man and former Taipan Sam Mennenga is enjoying a career-best season, averaging 16.1 points and 6.7 rebounds per game.

Izaiah Brockington provides punch on the wing (14.3 points per game) and stretch four Rob Baker (10.5 points per game) brings size and spacing, opening driving lanes for the guards.

Keep your eyes on Karim Lopez — averaging 10.6 points and 5.6 rebounds — is one of the more exciting talents in the world, looming as a potential lottery pick in the upcoming NBA draft.

Player to Watch - Jack McVeigh
Jack McVeigh is in outstanding touch, averaging 21 points on 54 per cent FG shooting, plus 6.3 rebounds and 4.4 assists.

The Australian Boomer has also ticked off a major milestone, reaching 300 NBL career three-pointers, becoming the latest Taipan to join the club.

Against New Zealand this season, he’s been the headline act with 82 points across two meetings including a career-high 47 point night.
‍
Andrews vs Jackson-Cartwright
Breakers playmaker Parker Jackson-Cartwright leads New Zealand in scoring and assists with 16.7 points and 7.5 assists per game, while he and Andrew Andrews (7.4) sit second and third in the NBL in assists behind 36ers superstar Bryce Cotton.

Andrews arrives in form after posting back-to-back 13 assist games, setting up a true floor-general showdown.

If you love premier guard play, this is the battle to witness — especially after Andrews (nine assists) went toe-to-toe with Jackson-Cartwright (11 assists) in their last meeting with the pair combining for 20 assists.

Taipans Head Coach Adam Forde:
"It was an ugly game. That’s not going to win too many beauty contests that game from both ends. Maldonado getting to the foul line. The grind out ending which credit to Jack McVeigh and Andrew Andrews to make some plays. We became spectators on the offensive end and a bit passive on the defensive end (in the second half)."

"The first quarter was great and the last four or five possessions (to close the game) were great. Everything in between was a bit clunky."

"Credit to Brisbane and Darryl McDonald, they flew up for the original gameday on Saturday. With the news of the warning of the cyclone, they travelled back to Brisbane for a day and then travelled up again. I know that can be taxing, credit to McDonald and the Bullets."

‍‍Lineups

‍Taipans

PG – Andrew Andrews / Lachlan Barker / Kyle Adnam

SG – Mojave King / Kody Stattmann / Lloyd McVeigh

SF –  Jack McVeigh

PF – Kyrin Galloway / Admiral Schofield

C – Sam Waardenburg / Marcus Lee‍

Breakers

PG – Parker Jackson-Cartwright / Taylor Britt

SG – Izaiah Brockington / Tai Webster / Sean Bairstow

SF – Karim López / Carlin Davison

PF – Robert Baker /  Reuben Te Rangi

C – Sam Mennenga / Robert Loe