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POLICE were directing traffic around the chalk outline of South East Melbourne as the Phoenix used NBL Round 20 as a chance to almost kill their playoff chances with a road loss to last-placed Cairns.

Playing their final home game of the season, the Taipans pleased the most faithful fans in the league by turning back a 16-point deficit inside the last minute of the third quarter, to overwhelm the finals wannabes in no uncertain fashion.

SEM had no answer to the avalanche that buried it and instead of consolidating a maiden playoff berth, shunted itself back into the pack playing for their playoff lives.

Having spoken late last week with Phoenix GM Tommy Greer and scoffed when he said it wasn't over until they were definitely in the Finals, I now slouch corrected.

Round 21 absolutely promises to be a beauty.

 

 

 

   ROUND 20 - GAME BY GAME

 

 

CAIRNS' late-season replacement Venky Jois has had well-documented and embarrassing times at the free throw line of late but many of us still marvel at what he brings and has brought to the Taipans as a late replacement for the irreplaceable Cam Oliver.

Averaging 16 minutes a game, he routinely compiles 7.1 points and 5.3 rebounds while doing much of the grunt work.

But with this Queensland derby clash with Brisbane hanging in the balance and Cairns trailing 96-99 with only heartbeats left, it never occurred to him why the Bullets left him so very wide open outside the 3-point arc.

I mean, if you have struggles making free throws, what chance a 3-pointer?

Answer?

None.

But he had the rush of blood and jacked it anyway, the shot barely glancing on the ring before the Bullets cleared it, a last-gasp foul and free throws creating Brisbane's ultimate winning score.

Sadly for the Taipans, who battled hard all night to stay in the contest, it meant all their hard work was overshadowed by Nathan Sobey's 21-point, 10-assist performance and Harry Froling's 20-point, nine rebound muscle flex.

At 15-17, it also still gave Brisbane a sniff of the post-season but in truth, that odour really was from the lawn clippings at the golf courses they will be teeing off from after the regular season.

BRISBANE BULLETS 101 (Sobey 21, Froling 20, Harrison 13, Hodgson, Patterson 12; Harrison 9 rebs; Sobey 10 assts) d CAIRNS TAIPANS 96 (King 25, Machado 23, Deng, Jawai 12; Jawai 7 rebs; Machado 12 assts) at the Snagpit, Cairns Pop-Up Arena. Crowd: 1,908

* * * 

THE Sydney Kings still knew it wasn't going to be easy snaring a win in Perth, even without Bryce Cotton suiting for the Wildcats.

They just had no idea when they dipped their toes into the waters at The Jungle, a couple of crocodiles were going to grab hold and perform the death roll right on them.

They were travelling along OK there for a period and even led 22-21 at the first break. But the Wildcats aren't ready to cut anyone a break and once they stepped into high gear midway through the second, the Kings were left with no clothes.

Croc #1, Mitch Norton was far more aggressive offensively and while his 11 points, six assists and three steals might not look overwhelming on the stats sheet, the manner in which he pushed it at Sydney certainly defied their pre-game scout. At the other end, he held Casper Ware to one point.

One.

Meanwhile Croc #2, Todd Blanchfield found his stroke in the second quarter and was instrumental in a 14-0 run which effectively ended this as a contest.

Luke Travers had his moments in that too, with a 6-0 solo run of his own, Perth's 32-16 second quarter leaving Sydney with more of a challenge than it could handle.

Late in the game, a mini 7-0 spurt gave Kings fans hope but after John Mooney shot three or four of his worst off-balance attempts of the season, the Wildcats steadied for a comfortable win, Mooney finishing on a 19-point, 10-rebound double-double.

PERTH WILDCATS 81 (Blanchfield 23, Mooney 19, Travers 16, Norton 11; Mooney 10 rebs; Norton 6 assts) d SYDNEY KINGS 67 (Martin 20, Hunter 14, Cooks 10; Hunter 9 rebs; Cooks 3 assts) at The Jungle, RAC Arena. Crowd: 10,650

* * * 

FINN Delany has enjoyed an All-Star Five-type season for New Zealand Breakers, his 24 points in the loss to Illawarra including 4-of-8 threes.

Rallying back from a double-digit deficit, the Breakers had a smidge of momentum to cut the Hawks' lead to 80-73 when Delany caught the ball outside the arc on the right wing.

He ball-faked his defender out of position, took a dribble left and shot a 3-pointer which would have made it 76-80 inside the last two minutes.

It was big, and when it rimmed out, no-one was more disconsolate or devastated than Delany himself.

In fact New Zealand did not score again as Illawarra chalked up its 18th win to shore up its hold on fourth place on the NBL ladder, Tyler Harvey the destroyer with 30 points, eight rebounds, four assists and five steals.

Only a regulation field goal separated the teams at halftime but the Breakers coughed up the ball eight times in the first half of the third quarter to open a door the Hawks swiftly soared through.

Their 23-14 quarter set up this key road win, coach Brian Goorjian largely sticking with his starters and with his "new boy" Tim Coenraad, a major signing if ever there was one.

ILLAWARRA HAWKS 84 (Harvey 30, Froling 22, Simon 13; Harvey, Simon 8 rebs; Harvey 4 assts) d NEW ZEALAND BREAKERS 73 (Delany 24, T.Webster 14, Randolph 13; Iverson, Randolph 8 rebs; McDowell-White five assists) at The Stockyard, Franklin Pool and Leisure Centre. Crowd: Figure unavailable

* * * 

LORDY, Lordy, Lordy. Talk about opportunity lost. South East Melbourne Phoenix only needed to beat the Taipans in Cairns to lock up a place in the Final Four behind Melbourne and Perth.

Instead now the Phoenix are going to have to battle out the last few rounds every step of the way following a stunning 31-14 last quarter barrage from the Taipans in front of a rabid Orange Army that could not have been more supportive or vocal.

South East led by 16 points late in the third period and this was all but done and dusted.

Except inside the final minute of the third term, Jarrod Kenny stroked a 3-point bomb, then Tad Dufelmeier followed suit and suddenly the margin was back to 10.

Scott Machado then opened the final quarter with a triple of his own and the deficit now was only seven and Cairns riding the momentum of a raucous home crowd that was lifting its team out of its eight-game losing streak.

Spotlight Mirko Djeric. Always capable of streaky shooting, Djeric delivered four 3-point daggers in the final quarter as Cairns went on a 16-2 run, turning this contest on its ear.

Majok Deng was hitting big shots, Nate Jawai had five assists with his 11 rebounds, Jordan Ngatai drilled 4-of-8 threes - the Taipans were a collective 15-of-25 with their long-range missile assault - and Mike Kelly's crew simply wanted it more the further this went.

Ryan Broekhoff came up with a Phoenix club record six steals but this was a disaster for SEM who, at 19-14, could have started plotting their playoff campaign. Instead at 18-15, suddenly holiday planning is on an equal-footing to any post-season activity.

CAIRNS TAIPANS 94 (Deng 22, Djeric 16, Dufelmeier, Ngatai 14, Machado 13; Jawai 11 rebs; Dufelmeier, Jawai 5 assts) d SOUTH EAST MELBOURNE PHOENIX 87 (Wetzell 25, Creek 13, Sykes 12; Wetzell 8 rebs; Sykes 7 assts) at the Snagpit, Cairns Pop-Up Arena. Crowd: 1,251

* * * 

DOESN'T really pay for your benchmen to poke the bear, as Sydney guard Shaun Bruce showed after halftime against United.

Sure, his shooting was woeful in the first half (0-of-6) but the kid CAN shoot so why goad him?

OK. It's Shaun, so it was hardly a "bear-poke" ... maybe more a koala-tickle.

But once that koala starting giggling, he laughed last and the loudest, Melbourne United finding itself in a sudden dogfight that never looked likely until Bruce went off for a 13-point third period.

The best single quarter of his career, Kings coach Adam Forde then sat him down while he was rolling which, again to me - unless Bruce asked to come out, and a player on a shooting roll rarely does that - was a coaching decision devoid of logic.

Bruce produced 10 points in a 16-0 run by Sydney which had Melbourne on its heels, Tom Vodanovich also effective from range. But when Bruce went out, United started a roll of their own which only was stymied when he came back in.

The match tied at 84-84 in regulation, Shea Ili had the chance to win it for Melbourne at the end of overtime but he flubbed his open layup to leave the scores locked at 90-90 and heading for a second five-minute extension.

Craig Moller, enjoying a superb all-around game with eight points, 11 rebounds, five assists, three steals and a block, opened the second o/t with a basket and while the match stayed poised on a razor's edge, two missed free throws by Jock Landale after being fouled on a 3-point attempt, was telling.

Melbourne had Casper Ware hog-tied and made some intriguing personnel decisions re defensive pressure that impacted on match-winning scorer Chris Goulding at the game's (prolonged) death, the Kings also having to deal with mid-fourth quarter adversity when Jarell Martin fouled out on an atrocious flop by Jo Lual-Acuil.

SYDNEY KINGS 100 (Bruce 21, Ware 16, Vodanovich 13, Martin 12, Cooks 10; Moller 11 rebs; Bruce 7 assts) d MELBOURNE UNITED 98 (Landale 23, Goulding 16, Peatling, Ili, Hopson 11, Laul-Acuil 10; Landale 11 rebs; McCarron 9 assts) in double overtime (84-84|90-90) at The Kingdome, Qudos Bank Arena. Crowd: 6,238 

* * * 

THE Hawks scored 31 first-quarter points, held Adelaide to 38 for the first half and generally had their way with the wayward 36ers.

For Illawarra to score 97 points when largely their main offensive focus is, was and will be Tyler Harvey, speaks volumes for the road-cone defence Adelaide's main men mustered.

Daniel Johnson did not appear at all interested and Brandon Paul was busy trying to find someone - anyone - on the opposition to engage with to fire himself up.

Illawarra wasn't much interested in fighting though, getting on with the job as Tim Coenraad, Dan Grida, AJ Ogilvy, Shane Froling, Deng Deng and Isaac White all kept the scoretable officials busy.

The Hawks were positively flying, leading by as many as 25 points while Sixers' coach Conner Henry persisted with a number of players who either don't much care or won't be around next season.

Jack Purachse finally saw 5:21 of daylight in another lost cause and rewarded possible 2021-22 suitors by knocking down a perfect 3-of-3 threeballs, plus had a rebound and an assist.

Why Henry isn't wagging the tail of his bench with more minutes as this season winds to its inevitable concusion - let's see if these guys can play instead of pumping minutes into those who can't or don't care beyond the paycheque - remains as big a mystery as his three-year contract. 

ILLAWARRA HAWKS 97 (Harvey 23, Froling 14, Coenraad 12, Grida 10; Ogilvy, Harvey 6 rebs; Naar, Harvey 5 assts) d ADELAIDE 36ERS 83 (Dech 15, Paul 13, Pinder 11, Crocker 10; Pinder 11 rebs; Dillon 6 assts) at the Sandpit, WIN Entertainment Centre. Crowd: 3,004

* * * 

IT most likely was fitting, in some strange roundabout way, that Andrej Lemanis' final game in New Zealand as an NBL coach would be at Spark Arena and finish with him walking out as a winner.

His inaugural NBL head coaching gig was with New Zealand Breakers and over time he took a club which was a basket case and turned it into a threepeat champion.

Desperately needing a win to keep alive a vague Final Four dream for his Brisbane Bullets, Lemanis plotted his former club's downfall in front of their biggest home crowd of the season and on their hallowed home court.

It didn't look promising with the emotional opening few minutes seeing the Breakers jumpstart the game on a 6-0 outburst. But by quarter-time the Bullets had shot to a 29-23 buffer and were playing with the focus and purpose so often lacking this season.

Lamar Patterson clearly had a point to make to the club which sacked him and compiled a flattering stats line with 21 points, eight rebounds and five assists.

His points came on 5-of-19 shooting though, whereas fellow Brisbane import BJ Johnson kncoked down his 14 points on a tidy 6-of-8.

As Patterson's replacement at the Breakers, Levi Randolph also played with a point to make and did so with an NBL career-best 30 points at 61 per cent, with 3-of-5 threes, along with six boards and five steals.

But the big difference here was that one team was playing for its home fans and the other was playing for a shot at the post-season and for once, Brisbane never lost its focus.

BRISBANE BULLETS 95 (Patterson 21, Hodgson 16, Sobey 15, Johnson 14; Hodgson 9 rebs; Sobey 7 assts) d NEW ZEALAND BREAKERS 83 (Randolph 30, Delany 17, T.Webster 15, C.Webster 13; Iverson 17 rebs; C.Webster 6 assts) at Spark Arena. Crowd: 7,612

* * * 

FIRST-placed Melbourne versus last-placed Cairns and in Sydney ... here's a game worth crawling over broken glass to see.

Sadly, that did not appeal to anyone and United took care of business, as most anyone not affiliated with the Orange Army would and could have predicted.

United made its point early, Cairns rallied in the second quarter to make it seem like any minute a contest might break out.

Then Melbourne's 22-13 third term restored order and a match-winning buffer it carried through to the merciful siren. United led from go-to-whoa, was ahead by as many as 29 and drew 50 of its 101 point total from its seasoned bench.

David Barlow was a perfect 4-of-4 from long distance, Scotty Hopson and Jock Landale 3-of-4, Melbourne nailing 16-of-30 from beyond the arc.

MELBOURNE UNITED 101 (Hopson 21, Barlow, Landale 16, Peatling 12, Lual-Acuil, McCarron 10; Peatling 11 rebs; Hopson 5 assts) d CAIRNS TAIPANS 76 (Djeric 16, Dufelmeier, Deng 13, Machado, Jawai 10; Jawai 6 rebs; Machado, Djeric 3 assts) at the Sydney State Library, Qudos Bank Arena. Crowd: LOL

* * * 

ROUND 20 (What We Learnt)

*If you want to add to your turnover stats, lob a pass for a dunk to a big who is groundbound. That's the lesson Shaun Bruce understands now after lobbing a ball for Daniel Kickert to jump-for-and-dunk, only to see him stand and watch the ball sail out of court. "What? You expected me to jump and dunk that? It isn't 2010 anymore...";

*Luke Travers' driving baseline dunk against Sydney was just a further indicator of how much excitement this young man promises to generate in the very near future;

*Given a chance to play, Mojave King's 25 points against Brisbane was his best return as Cairns' Next Star and maybe shows Mike Kelly should have persisted with him through some of those earlier trials and tribulations; 

*Kevin White reckons Venky Jois' 3-point shot for the tie in Cairns' loss to Brisbane was a well-considered attempt;

*Craig Moller has a tip for Venky Jois. Start practising your 3-point attempts. It really does pay;

*Yep. Andrew Mulligan and Casey Frank in New Zealand provide the best TV commentary in the NBL. Pays to be in attendance AT the game and also to commentate ABOUT the game;

*Mulligan also is quick enough to recognise himself when he has just called BJ Johnson as "BJ Armstrong" and make the apology and correction before most listeners even noticed;

*Jo Lual-Acuil must have ESP. He not only correctly predicted the move Sydney's Jarell Martin was about to make, he was already falling backwards from the contact, before it even happened! Flop tech? No. Fifth foul on Martin so now we're seeking the Lotto numbers from JLA;

*Jesse Wagstaff is expected to ring Shea Ili and console him for the missed open layup that would have won United its road game against Sydney. "Could happen to anyone mate"; 

*Is Tim Coenraad the mature-age recruit of the year?

*Was the observation by TV caller and all-time Aussie basketball great Andrew Gaze that 36ers' shooting guard Tony Crocker would be very handy as the third import when the NBL goes back to three, really just his subtle way of saying Crocker shouldn't be holding down an import spot in a two-import system? Kinda sounded like it;

*After straddling the centreline to sink a long bomb closing the third quarter in Wollongong, the next time a car is up for grabs on a halftime halfcourt shot, under-utilised 36ers small forward Jack McVeigh will be ready;

*Brandon Paul's foul against Illawarra from the tip with the clock showing 9:58 is NOT the record for a rapidfire foul. Anthony Petrie, also playing for Adelaide, was assessed with a foul at 9:58 off the tip against Cairns on September 20, 2013. Paul has now matched Petrie's record, making that twice it's happened in the NBL's history and both times to 36ers players. 

TOMORROW: Team of the Week