Kai Sotto and the Adelaide 36ers. 36ERS PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines — Adelaide 36ers unleashed a fourth quarter surge on Cairns Taipans to end their five-game skid with a rousing 83-57 victory in Australia’s National Basketball League on Friday at Adelaide Entertainment Centre.
Mitch McCarron, Tad Dufelmeier and Cameron Bairstow sparked Adelaide’s 18-0 run in the final six minutes of fourth quarter to finally regain their winning ways in front of their 3,596 home crowd.
Filipino import Kai Sotto struggled offensively, missing all his seven shots in the field and scored only two freethrows after finishing with a season-best 14 points in their last game.
Sotto, though, still collected eight rebounds, two blocks and an assist in 17 minutes of play.
Kai got the deny on Jawai.
📺 – @ESPNAusNZ + @kayosports pic.twitter.com/Gb1L5GkLpA
— Adelaide 36ers (@Adelaide36ers) March 18, 2022
McCarron showed the way for the 36ers with 21 points, highlighted with four triples, to go with 10 rebounds, three assists and three steals.
Bairstow chimed in with 12 points and six rebounds. Dufelmeier had 10 markers, five boards and an assist, while Sunday Dech and Daniel Johnson added nine apiece as Adelaide improved to 6-12.
Adelaide went full throttle in the fourth quarter, where it scored 22 and held Cairns to six points in the period.
After Majok Deng’s lay-up in the 6:23 mark to cut the lead down to ten, 65-55, the 36ers’ air tight defense kept the Taipans scoreless for six minutes while unloading 18 unanswered points capped by Dusty Hannahs’ three-point play to build an 83-55 spread with 33 seconds to go.
Keanu Pinder led Cairns, who suffered their fifth straight defeat, with a double-double 15 points and 13 rebounds. Tahjere McCall posted 14 points, six boards and five assists, while Bul Kuol added 12 markers.
Adelaide takes on Melbourne United on Sunday at John Cain Arena.