THE ACTION continues in the National Basketball League (NBL) tonight, with hostilities for Round 9 resume with a clash between the Cairns Taipans and the SEM Phoenix in Queensland in a high-stakes clash.

On paper, it looks as if the Phoenix will enter this matchup heavily favoured when looking at the standings, given South East Melbourne has enjoyed a strong start to the season and sits nicely inside the top three of the ladder. On the other hand, it has not been easy going for the Taipans, with most of their frontcourt missing chunks or all of the season to date and the team entering this clash in 10th place after eight weeks of play.

However, this NBL season has proven extremely unpredictable, particularly of late, and with home court advantage at Cairns Convention Centre on Friday night, the Taipans are certainly capable of pulling off an upset, but it will take their best.

Cairns Taipans vs. South East Melbourne Phoenix

Cairns Convention Centre
Friday, November 14 @ 7:30pm

The Taipans have won just three games from 12 outings over the first eight weeks of the season, and have not been able to trouble some of the top teams in the competition, with two of those victories coming way back in September.

They were able to put together a competitive performance against the reigning champions in the Illawarra Hawks last weekend, although they still suffered a 17-point loss at the hands of one of the form teams of the competition, so there is still a discrepancy between Cairns and the contenders of the NBL as it stands.

One of the biggest positives from that game was the form of Mojave King, who re-joined the NBL after some time overseas and a stint in the G League with the Ignite Team. Against the Taipans, he dropped a whopping 32 points and was far and away the standout for Cairns in the loss. In a season where the team has struggled for offensive production, King may just be the answer.

The Phoenix have been rock solid to start the season, cementing themselves as a contender for the 2025/26 fixture with some excellent offensive performances. Under Josh King, the Phoenix have been one of the most reliable scoring teams in the NBL, which has been one of the biggest factors in their red-hot start to proceedings.

However, they did suffer a loss at the hands of the ladder-leading Melbourne United in the Throwdown last weekend, which was shaping as a big test for South East Melbourne’s championship aspirations. Although the Phoenix kept it close, they lacked the polish to get the job done late in the piece and will be eager to bounce back.

It is hard to see the Phoenix doing as well as they have without the offensive performances of Nathan Sobey. The veteran guard has shown no signs of slowing down, averaging 21.6 points per game while shooting 44 per cent from the field, and will undoubtedly be one of the biggest factors in the match up north tonight.