FOLLOWING Wednesday night’s statement performance in the National Basketball League (NBL) Ignite Cup, the Illawarra Hawks will be looking to cement their return to form and claim their second win in a row when they face the Cairns Taipans.

The reigning champions will travel north to take on the Taipans at Cairns Convention Centre tonight, fresh off a season-defining victory earlier in the week. Undoubtedly, the hosts will enter the clash as underdogs, given the Taipans have found the going quite tough this season and will head into the matchup in 10th spot on the ladder.

However, the NBL is renowned for upsets, and anything can happen with home court advantage. If the Taipans can pull off the upset, it may be a sliding doors moment for the remainder of their season, although it is a tall order against last year’s winners.

Cairns Taipans vs. Illawarra Hawks

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

The Taipans have not had a clean run at it to start the 2025/26 season, struggling over the first couple of months of play and falling down to 10th spot as a result. With Sam Waardenburg still sidelined through injury and star off-season recruit Jack McVeigh missing games as well, it has been far from the ideal start to proceedings for the NBL’s northernmost team.

Winning just three of their first 11 games, it has not been pretty at times for the Taipans, with some matches turning into 30+ point blowouts both at home and on the road. Tonight will be another big challenge for Cairns, but also presents a strong opportunity to flip the script and put the pressure back on another championship hopeful.

McVeigh will still be a focal point for the Taipans, with the million dollar man performing strongly whenever he is on the court. The addition of a true point guard in Andrew Andrews has taken a lot of the playmaking pressure off the NBL Grand Final MVP, but he will need a big scoring performance tonight if he is to lead Cairns to victory.

The Hawks sent a warning to the rest of the competition with their blowout win over Melbourne United on Wednesday night, completely dominating the ladder-leaders and breathing plenty of life into their championship defence against the form team of the competition in a win that moved them from 10th to seventh in the standings.

It was a result that continued on from their competitive loss against the Adelaide 36ers last Sunday, and now the Hawks will be looking to keep that form rolling in tonight’s clash against the Taipans. Illawarra should be good enough to get the job done on the road tonight, and could keep climbing the ladder in an ominous sign for opposition teams.

For the Hawks, the key to victory is all about their star duo in JaVale McGee and William Hickey, who are central to the team’s championship aspirations. McGee is fresh off a 37-point masterclass against United, while Hickey has completely changed the dynamic of the team since returning from injury, so expect the pair to be heavily involved on Friday.