Snake Eyes – Taipans v 36ers NBL Cup

The CQUniversity Cairns Taipans not only got an important win at the NBL Cup on Thursday but looked good in doing so and now the Snakes try to back it up against the Adelaide 36ers on Saturday.

The Taipans needed to stop a three-game losing streak and respond strongly against the Sydney Kings in Melbourne at the NBL Cup on Thursday, and they did so impressively to come away with the 96-92 victory.

That performance improved the Taipans to a 4-9 record overall this NBL season and to be 2-3 at the NBL Cup with 13 points to their credit from the 35 that have been available over the five matches.

Now the Taipans prepare to take on the 36ers on Saturday in the first meeting between the two teams this season even though they did meet in a couple of pre-season clashes in Cairns just before the season got underway in January.

There's plenty to look forward to in the clash, including the following five things: 

1. NO CHOICE BUT TO KEEP MOMENTUM GOING
Thursday night's win had a lot to like about it from a Cairns Taipans perspective but it's now crucial the momentum from that continues on Saturday 

Now is as good a time as any for the Cairns Taipans to start building some momentum this NBL season and stringing good performances together.

It had appeared the Snakes were pulling things together when they snapped a six-game losing streak to beat the New Zealand Breakers at home and then opened up the NBL Cup in Melbourne with an impressive come from behind win against the Illawarra Hawks.

There was then a strong showing against the league-leading Melbourne United two days later and despite that being a narrow loss, the Taipans were still playing pretty good basketball for most of that game.

There was little evidence of what was to come in the next two games, though, which were back-to-back 20-point losses against the Perth Wildcats and Brisbane Bullets.

That meant the Snakes needed to bounce back on Thursday night against the Sydney Kings, and they did to come away with the 96-92 victory with a lot to like about the performance.

As a team, the Taipans outrebounded the Kings 37 to 27 and had 12 offensive rebounds which resulted in 24 second chance points. Sydney had just seven offensive boards for four second chance points.

The Taipans also shot the ball well going 37/69 from the field at 53 per cent and were impressive inside scoring 54 points in the paint.

Then individually a whole host of Snakes players stepped up. Scott Machado still had 24 points and five assists, and Cam Oliver 12 points and five rebounds, but on this night they received tremendous support.

Nate Jawai had a season-best 22 points, Fabijan Krslovic a career-best 15 points and 10 rebounds while Mirko Djeric added 12 points with four three-pointers. Jordan Ngatai also had six points and Kouat Noi four to go with five rebounds.

Those were all the positives and there were plenty of them. But they will count for nought if the Taipans don't back it up and deliver another strong showing on Saturday against the 36ers.

2. BIG CHANCE AGAIN AWAITS FOR NATE
Taipans centre Nate Jawai delivered his best performance of the season on Thursday against Sydney and he'll be given every chance to do it against Adelaide

Through no fault of his own and while maintaining an incredibly positive attitude, Nate Jawai's minutes have fallen in 2021 but he has remained ready and willing, and that all became worth it on Thursday night.

With the NBL becoming an increasingly smaller league with fewer and fewer genuine towering centres, and with the general pace the games are played at increasing, there has been times where it has been tough for Snakes coach Mike Kelly to find too many minutes for Jawai.

But at no point did Kelly not still have full faith in what Jawai could produce in the right situation and at no point did the big man himself display anything but an incredibly positive and supportive attitude.

However, all the pieces fell into place perfectly on Thursday night against the Sydney Kings. 

They were missing their own impressive import centre Jarell Martin and with Cam Oliver not feeling quite 100 per cent for the Taipans either, it just made sense for Kelly to get Jawai in there early and it began to work, and that continued to be the case the rest of the night.

Jawai's minutes still weren’t through the roof at just 15 and-a-half, but boy did he make the most of them. The 170-game NBL veteran produced 22 points, six rebounds and three assists on the back of shooting a supremely efficient 10/12 from the field.

The Kings had no answer for him and he was instrumental in the eventual win for the Taipans.

Now the chance presents for Jawai to deliver more of the same against an Adelaide 36ers team on Saturday that is without their own centre Isaac Humphries.

That will likely mean the Sixers have to use either Keanu Pinder or Daniel Johnson to guard him, and Jawai will like his chances and Kelly will have no trouble backing him in after what he produced against the Kings.

"Nate was clutch for us. I loved the spirit that he came out to play with and it translated to getting buckets so that's a good combination. He has been good and rounding into form, and he was really big and we wouldn’t have won without his great contribution," Kelly said.

"Nate has been a great teammate all year and this was his time to shine. He is always a great target for us and then when he got rolling, the guys felt great about it and we tried to run some simple stuff to get some looks for him, and he made hay."

3. FABULOUS FAB TO KEEP GETTING CHANCES TOO
Fabijan Krslovic has made the most of his increased role stepping up the last few games and coach Mike Kelly is backing him to continue doing so

Majok Deng is missed by the Cairns Taipans there's no question, but with Fabijan Krslovic waiting to step up into the void there was no panic stations when he got injured and he continues to show what he's capable of.

Krslovic had already started a couple of games earlier in the season so it wasn’t anything totally foreign to him after Deng injured a knee in the second game against Melbourne United at the NBL Cup.

But not only would he now be required to start but he'd be called upon to play a largely increased role all game and he is showing he is more than up to that challenge.

Despite a tough loss against the Perth Wildcats a couple of games earlier, Krslovic still produced 10 points and six rebounds before then setting a host of career-highs in Thursday's win against the Sydney Kings.

In the 51st game of his NBL career, Krslovic played over 33 minutes and went on to produce 15 points, 10 rebounds, four steals, a block and a steal while shooting a perfect 6/6 from the field and 2/2 at the foul line.

He was outstanding on the glass collecting four of Cairns' 12 offensive rebounds for the game and had a significant say in the eventual victory for the Snakes.

Coach Mike Kelly has never had any trouble throwing Krslovic into any situation because he always knows he'll get his full effort, and he is now keen to see that continue on Saturday against the Adelaide 36ers.

"Fab was really good and he got us going. He put us in the right direction in that first half and I don’t know how many offensive rebounds he had, but he was really alive and active," Kelly said.

"He always plays smart but he made big plays and made some shots, and rebounded the ball really well. I expect big things from Fab and in that game he was outstanding."

4. IMPROVED SHOWING GIVES PLENTY TO BUILD ON
The Cairns Taipans did a lot of things right in Thursday's win against Illawarra and now coach Mike Kelly wants to see more of the same against Adelaide

The result was obviously what the Cairns Taipans were after against the Sydney Kings, but it was the effort to get there for most of the night that was most pleasing for coach Mike Kelly.

The Taipans needed a response to the 20-point losses to both Brisbane and Perth, and not only did they bounce back on Thursday with a win but there was a lot to like about the way they went about playing the game as well.

Taipans coach and reigning NBL Coach of the Year Mike Kelly might not have been happy with everything he saw in the middle stages, but the way the Snakes started and finished the game against the Kings was close to what he was hoping to see in terms of execution.

The effort areas were all impressive starting with the strong rebounding showing while the offence clicked well too, and now Kelly is hoping to see more of the same if not even more of the impressive play for longer on Saturday against Adelaide.

"There was great effort and I think for the most part we tried to stick to the plan. They are a very gifted offensive team and they play hard, but it was a little bit of a circus out there for a little while," Kelly said. 

"But then I was happy with how we steadied. It was a good first half where we played good basketball that was cleaner. Then it was a bit of a mess in the middle and then the guys finished with some big plays."

5. SMALLER SIXERS WILL STILL TAKE SOME BEATING
The Adelaide 36ers might be missing starting centre and MVP fancy Isaac Humphries but by no means can the Taipans afford to take them lightly

Saturday will be the first ever time that the Cairns Taipans and Adelaide 36ers have played one another in Melbourne for NBL points, and it's also their first meeting of the #NBL21 season.

The Taipans and 36ers did play in two pre-season games back in early January as their last hit outs before the season proper got underway, but that was two months ago as they prepare to meet at the NBL Cup on Saturday.

Similar to Cairns, Adelaide played most of its games at home in the first part of the season in the lead up to the NBL Cup and the 36ers have also been on a rollercoaster ride.

They have now lost their past three matches to hold a 6-8 overall record this season and to be 1-4 at the NBL Cup on the back of a loss to the Illawarra Hawks on Thursday night.

When Adelaide has played well this season, a lot of that was on the back of the form of imposing centre Isaac Humphries. 

He was considered by many a genuine MVP threat and was putting up 15.5 points, 8.1 rebounds, 3.3 blocks and 1.2 assists a game while being a force offensively and a real intimidating presence defensively.

But two games ago for Adelaide, he injured his foot in the first quarter against the New Zealand Breakers to mean he will be sidelined for some time including on Saturday against the Taipans.

The Sixers still put in a competitive showing without Humphries against the Hawks on Thursday, and the Taipans can't afford to take anything for granted against.

Adelaide point guard and NBL Next Star Josh Giddey is looking forward to trying to keep finding a way in the absence of Humphries.

"It's tough obviously because Isaac is such a key piece for us inside both defensively and offensively. We had guys step up and Jack McVeigh was awesome at the four spot giving us some big plays on both ends," Giddey said. 

"It is tough without Isaac but he's out so that's the reality we have to deal with and learn to play through it. I think we were good for 85 or 90 per cent of that match but we let them break it open early in the fourth quarter. I think if we can clean up in that area that we'll be good."