Taipans win first Summer Shootout

The Kenfrost Homes Cairns Taipans have taken out the NBL’s inaugural NBL Summer Shootout, with a winning score of 111 points against the Brisbane Bullets on January 17.

As one of just three teams to reach triple digits in their nominated Shootout game across the month of January, the Taipans outscored the entire league. The second-best team was the Perth Wildcats with 105 points against the JackJumpers.

Strategically selecting their Queensland rivals, Cairns were able to take advantage of Brisbane as the city where they’ve been able to score points quickly under Taipans Head Coach Adam Forde – including at home.

Averaging 98 points at Nissan Arena since 2021 despite no games seeing overtime, the Taipans surpassed their average at the Bullets’ new home at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre to outscore their hosts by 31 points to reach 111 on the night.

Despite being outrebounded by the Bullets who were able to get more shots up, an electric shooting night by Cairns saw them shoot the ball 23% better than their hosts and make an extra 14 buckets – six of which were from behind the arc.

Snatching the lead from the Wildcats, Cairns returned home to host the Illawarra Hawks the following weekend, who rolled into the tropics looking to grab the lead in their own Summer Shootout game.

As the only team across the league to average scoring triple digits across the season, the Hawks posed a serious threat for the competition, however stumbled out of the gate with a 31-17 deficit at the first break.

With neither team able shoot their way ahead like Cairns did in Brisbane, the Taipans looked to draw contact and send themselves to the free throw line, with the home side taking double the attempts at the line which proved to be the undoing for Illawarra.

Waiting a week to see their fate sealed, neither the Bullets nor the Phoenix were able to surpass Cairns’ score on the final day of the month, with the Taipans taking out the inaugural Shootout competition. The NBL have announced that five fans have correctly predicted Cairns would win with a scoreline of 111 points, with the winner of the grand prize still to be determined.

The Kenfrost Homes Cairns Taipans now turn their attention to their final games of the season – starting in New Zealand tonight, before returning home on Thursday night and ending their season in Tasmania on Saturday. Tickets for the final home game of the season are available HERE!