Match preview: Sixers plotting Blitz bounce-back

The Adelaide 36ers will be looking to finish the Blitz with a bang when they take on the Cairns Taipans on Saturday night.

The 36ers are coming off a last second one-point loss to Illawarra in their opening game of the Blitz with Hawk Milton Doyle hitting a game-winning triple just before the buzzer.

Kiwi Flynn Cameron starred with 27 points, six rebounds and six assists while Zylan Cheatham added another double double to his tally with 16 points and 16 rebounds to go with three assists.

Matt Kenyon (concussion) and new signing Bul Kuol (ACL) remain sidelined, impacting the Sixers defensive depth and Isaac Humphries (managed) didn’t take the court on Thursday night.

While the Sixers have a relatively settled roster heading into the Hungry Jack’s NBL27 season, Cairns has gone through a period of renewal with four players retained and a host of new faces.

Among them are talented Next Star Luke Paul (ankle), former Sixer Sunday Dech (hamstring) and Jaylin Galloway (shoulder) who each missed the Taipans Blitz opening come-from-behind 85-82 win over Perth on the opening night on Wednesday.

Reyne Smith (18 points, four rebounds, three assists) and Jack McVeigh (17 points, three rebounds, two assists) did most of the damage with Shaun Bruce chipping in during his valuable 34 minutes on the court.

While the Sixers were still building into their pre-season on Thursday, playing their first game against opposition, the Taipans are well and truly in game mode, having played pre-season games against St Mary’s College along with NBL outfits Perth, South East Melbourne and Melbourne United.

Trevor Gleeson’s side has a good recent record against Saturday night’s opponent, having been victorious on each of the past six meetings between the sides.

Most recently, the Sixers led from start to finish on Christmas Eve to win by 20 points at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre.

Bryce Cotton top scored that evening with 22 points to go with six rebounds and 11 assists, while Nick Rakocevic also put in a strong showing, adding 13 rebounds to his 19 points.

All games at the Code Sports NBL Blitz will be available to watch on ESPN via Kayo or Disney+ as well as being streamed on 9Now.

ADELAIDE 36ERS vs CAIRNS TAIPANS 
Red Energy Arena, Bendigo, Saturday, 5 September, 7:30pm ACST
Live on ESPN via Kayo Sports or Disney+ or on 9Now

OVERALL
Played 92, Adelaide 52, Cairns 40

LAST FIVE MATCHES
Dec 24, 2025 – 36ers 93 def Taipans 73 at AEC
Nov 16, 2025 – 36ers 105 def Taipans 101 at AEC
Oct 18, 2025 – 36ers 91 def Taipans 86 at Cairns Convention Centre
Oct 2, 2025 – 36ers 110 def Taipans 79 at Cairns Convention Centre 
Jan 19, 2025 – 36ers 99 def Taipans 75 at Cairns Convention Centre