OF their nine defeats this season, Wollongong’s 91-89 home loss to Cairns in round two stands out as the one that got away.
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The Hawks went toe to toe with the Taipans in a close first half before falling behind by seven at three-quarter time.
Despite briefly regaining the lead in the final period, their wholehearted fightback fell just short, as the visitors hit clutch three-point shots to seal victory.
The Hawks aim to avenge the loss when they take on the Taipans on Saturday night in Cairns.
‘‘Ten from 21 from the three, that’s pretty good,’’ Wollongong coach Gordie McLeod said of the Taipans’ three-point shooting in the previous meeting.
‘‘We had some people that we wanted to shoot and they made shots. Shaun Bruce was two from two. Do you want him or [Stephen] Weigh or [Alex] Loughton shooting that? You have to pick your poison at times.
‘‘We disrupted pretty well with our defence, but we need to generate more stops.’’
Cairns won two more games after beating the Hawks for a perfect 6-0 start to the season. They have since lost three straight, including Thursday night’s 17-point thrashing from Sydney.
The Hawks triumphed both times they visited Cairns last season.
‘‘Wollongong want to move the ball and shoot open jumpers, and we sort of want to sit in gaps and clog it up,’’ Taipans forward Cam Tragardh said.
‘‘It’s no secret we like to clog up the game a bit and clog up the keyway, so while it disrupts some teams, it sometimes plays into the Hawks’ hands.’’
