NBL champion Jack McVeigh has scored a career-best 47 points to lead Cairns to an epic four-point win over New Zealand Breakers just a few days after becoming a father.
The 29-year-old now has the second most points in a game by a Taipan behind Martin Cattalini, who shot 51 back in 2006.
McVeigh, who also had eight rebounds and three assists in the 99-95 win at the Cairns Convention Centre on Friday night, goes into second position behind Bryce Cotton for the most points in a game this season.
“Shoutout out to the baby at home, it’s been a fun week,” McVeigh said post-game.
“That was cool to come out there and get that win.”
Taipans big Sam Waardenburg was also important to the Taipans’ fifth win of the season with 16 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists in his second outing of the campaign.
Rob Baker narrowed the margin to two with 12 seconds to play after a Parker Jackson-Cartwright steal, but a clutch McVeigh at the other end continued his perfect shooting from the free throw line to nail two from two and make it the victorious 99-95 scoreline.
The second win in three games for the Taipans now lifts them equal on five wins with Brisbane and a step closer to jumping off the bottom of the table.
The result also brought about the Taipans’ highest scoring of the season, beating their previous best of 96 also against the Breakers back on November 14.
Breakers forward Sam Mennenga was best for the visitors with 24 points, eight rebounds and five assists but it wasn’t enough as they fall to a 7-12 record and remain in seventh position.
Breakers star guard Jackson-Cartwright had 12 points and 11 assists in another promising outing for the Ignite Cup leaders.
Taipans guard Mojave King returned from a glute strain and had seven points, two rebounds and two assists from 26 minutes.
Breakers forward Carlin Davison landed a crucial three midway through the third quarter to put his side 61-59 ahead on a night where he finished with 10 points and three rebounds.
JACKED MCVEIGH
Marquee man McVeigh was on fire in the first half with an electric 26 points including a trio of threes to steer the Taipans to a five-point advantage.
McVeigh levelled the score line early in the second quarter and then followed it up with a lay up to give the Taipans their first lead of the game.
Then he nailed his third three of the game with three seconds to go in the first half to life his side to a 48-43 lead at half time after they were down 9-16 earlier in the first quarter.
The 2024 NBL Grand Final MVP shot 11/12 with his only miss a half-court shot which wouldn’t have counted if it was an NBA-ruled game.
McVeigh, who also became a new dad recently, finally made his first miss outside the half court shot with 2min 45sec left in the third quarter.
Even when he was on four fouls early in the last quarter, an unfazed McVeigh went on to nail back-to-back threes to put his side 83-77 ahead.
McVeigh finished his starring night with six threes shooting 6/8 from deep. And he was 16/21 overall for his 47 points.
HOME WIN
Taipans fans have had little to celebrate watching on at home this season, but they were finally treated to some epic basketball.
The Taipans improved their home record to 2-9 with the win.
A McVeigh pass for Marcus Lee to dunk midway in the fourth gave the loyal supporters plenty to cheer about.
Heading into the game, the Breakers had won their past six at the Cairns Convention Centre and were on a seven-game win streak over the Taipans.
POLAR OPPOSITE
The Taipans scored the first 13 points against Tasmania in their last game, but started with conceding an 0-5 run against the Breakers.
Meanwhile, the Breakers went 8/9 shooting from the field in the first six minutes to help spark a 23-19 lead after the first quarter. It compares better to the 26-20 deficit they had at the first break in their last game against South East Melbourne.
LUCKLESS NBL STAR FACES THIRD STINT ON THE SIDELINES
— Lance Jenkinson
Luckless two-time reigning NBL defensive player of the year Shea Ili looks set for a third stint on the sidelines with injury this season after pulling up lame in Melbourne United’s pressure relieving 97-75 win over Illawarra Hawks at John Cain Arena on Thursday night.
Ili landed awkwardly on a drive to the hoop during the second quarter and immediately checked himself out of the game, leaving his team to play with four-on-five for that play knowing the injury curse had struck him once again.
The 34-year-old New Zealander went straight down to the changerooms fearing another hamstring and slammed a crowd barrier down in frustration.
Ili has managed to play just seven out of a possible 20 games this season.
It was a crucial victory for United, entering on the back of four consecutive losses, including overtime heartbreakers in their last two against title contenders Sydney Kings and Adelaide 36ers.
United was in control throughout, but put the foot on the accelerator in a dominant 23-8 fourth quarter.
Crafty point guard Tyson Walker stepped up big time for United in Ili’s absence.
Walker finished with a double-double 21 points, 10 assists and three steals.
He will again be entrusted with big minutes in the United back court with Ili set for another absence.
The ever-consistent Finn Delany was superb for United with 18 points, seven rebounds and four assists, while Tanner Krebs’s 17-point outing was crucial with star shooter Chris Goulding out through illness.
Goulding’s health has been an issue this season, but whenever the skipper has missed, United has found a way with a 6-0 record in games he has missed.
United centre Jesse Edwards muscled up well to Illawarra’s three-time NBA champion JaVale McGee.
Edwards had an important 12 points and nine rebounds, while McGee flashed in and out with 18 points and 10 rebounds.
There was a concern for McGee late though.
The veteran exited the game late in the fourth quarter wincing in pain after copping a poke in the eye from Delany.
Tyler Harvey undoubtedly kept the Hawks in the contest in the first half, but he endured some discomfort with a back issue and was ineffective in the second half, finishing with 18 points after scoring 15 through the first two quarters.
The Hawks slumped to 6-11 and their title defence is hanging by a thread.
WALKER SETS TONE
Walker was aggressive in the opening sequences, setting up Tanner Krebs for game’s opening three, drawing a foul on a drive to the hoop and then landing a corner three as United skipped to an 8-3 lead and setting the time.
Known United killer Will Hickey was cooking early with the Hawks opening five points, but was quiet thereafter.
It took United less than two minutes to eclipse the paltry one three-pointer they hit from 28 long range attempts against the Kings on Sunday.
It was an all-in collective effort on the defensive end for United.
The intensity they showed turned back to their early season feats when they strangled opposition teams.
BAD TIMING
There was a 10 minute delay to the game just 30 seconds in the third quarter due to a malfunctioning shot clock.
The delay was lengthy enough that both teams had to warm up for a second time.
It is not the first time an NBL game has been delayed due to timing issues with a recent South East Melbourne Phoenix game delayed through a malfunctioning shot clock.
United reacted better to the unscheduled break, restoring their double digit lead with Delany piling on 10 quick points, including a vicious dunk.
United’s Next Star and birthday boy Dash Daniels produced a crucial three pointer early in the fourth to break the backs of the Hawks.
DAVIS, COTTON, IN DUEL OF NBL’S BEST
It was billed as a battle of the NBL’s two best players as star guards Kendric Davis and Bryce Cotton went toe-to-toe.
Davis scored a decisive knockout in their first meeting, but Cotton came into the contest as the clear MVP favourite with Adelaide sitting pretty at the top of the table.
Through three quarters the two were both solid in an Ignite Cup blockbuster in Canberra, as the Kings came back from 18 points down in the second quarter to lead by one heading into the fourth.
Just as the Kings looked like they could close out the contest with a four-point lead inside the final two minutes, Cotton (25 points, six rebounds, nine assists) stepped up with five quick points to put the 36ers back in front.
Davis (27 points, six rebounds, seven assists) answered the call, running the floor after a missed free throw to beat the buzzer by the narrowest of margins to send the match into overtime.
Matthew Dellavedova took over in the extra period, dropping six including the match-sealing free throws to guide Sydney to a 97-93 victory in one of the games of the season.
DOING THEIR HOMEWORK
Adelaide had their pants pulled down when these two sides met back in round four, scoring just 19 points in the first term and never finding their rhythm offensively.
They had no such issues this time around as Cotton’s defence led to attack and DJ Vasiljevic dropped 11 points in five minutes off the bench.
The former King was cooking his old team, which made the decision to sub him out with 1.21 left in the first quarter all the more puzzling.
TANDEM GOES BANG
The 36ers turned the screws in the second quarter as they out-hustled the Kings to open up an 18-point margin midway through the term.
Their defence went to another level, restricting Sydney to just 20 points for the quarter as they dominated the boards (24-12), leaving their opponent’s generally strong defence scrambling to keep up with their high-octane play.
Strike weapons Cotton and Vasiljevic had 32 combined at the half, while Davis was the only King in double digits as Adelaide opened up a 13-point lead at the main break.
GOORJ IGNITES KINGS
Whatever Brian Goorjian told his troops at halftime, it worked.
They came out of the sheds as a brand new team, completely shutting down Adelaide’s offence.
Their stingy defence restricted them to just nine points for the quarter, as Xavier Cooks took over with 10 in the quarter to lift Sydney to an unlikely one-point advantage heading into the fourth, before going on to finish with a season-high 27 points.
FIRE UP THE CANNONS
Canberra played host to an NBL fixture for just the second time since 2008 as the case mounts for a return for the Cannons to the league.
The locals did their part, packing the stands with a sellout crowd of 4154 at the AIS Arena despite the unfavourable Wednesday night timeslot.
It comes after the capital did a good job of showing up for the pre-season CODE Sports Blitz.
ALL PRAISE FOR CANBERRA FROM GOORJIAN
A return of the NBL to Canberra has received a glowing endorsement from the league’s most decorated coach.
After his Sydney Kings knocked off Adelaide in an overtime thriller in front of a sold-out crowd at the AIS Arena, Brian Goorjian threw his support behind a return to the nation’s capital.
As Goorjian notched his 850th game in the league as a coach, he knows first-hand what the impact the Cannons had.
While the memories of Sydney’s last foray into Canberra came during one of the darkest periods for the Kings, Goorjian said the current state of the league is much different than it was in the mid 2000s.
“I was with the Kings previously when we played five games here, when the league at that time was really struggling,” he said.
“We shortly after went into receivership and it was a nightmare.
“Now I keep saying with what has gone on with the league and where the league’s going, I go back long enough that I played Jerry Lee and that group of guys.
“Three championships, this thing was hopping and you’ve got the Centre of Excellence here, the AIS back then. There was great basketball being played here.”
The talk of a Cannons revival reached fever pitch after Canberra hosted the pre-season CODE Sports Blitz in September, with the Kings giving the nation’s capital its first taste of regular season NBL for the first time in seven years.
Goorjian pointed to the number of Australians playing overseas and the growth of basketball in communities as the perfect reasons to consider expansion.
“The game is hot right now,” he said.
“We’ve got a lot of players playing in America. We’ve got a Sudanese community, we’ve got an Indigenous community, we’ve got the Next Star.
“We need more teams so there’s more opportunities for players. What better place than here.”
Goorjian admits there was pressure on the group to deliver in front of the big crowd, but said the atmosphere showed they are ready to return.
“I thought I was really kind of nervous that we need to put on a good show tonight and what kind of support are we going to get,” he said.
“It was a tremendous atmosphere to play in and there’s energy now around basketball.
“I spent the afternoon at the Centre of Excellence with that group and everyone’s talking about NBL for Canberra.
“We walk away tonight feeling like we did a little good for them.”
Originally published as NBL round 13 scores, news, results: Luckless star Ili faces third stint on the sidelines this season
