Cairns trounce error-riddled Bullets in NBL shootout

Steve Barrett | October 29, 2026

Cairns have taken advantage of a butter-fingered display by Brisbane,  strolling to a 107-85 victory and consolidating fourth position on the NBL ladder.

Jack McVeigh (23 points), Reyne Smith (20), Jaylon Brown (19) and Malique Lewis (16) all fired for the Taipans at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre on Thursday night.

Taine Murray poured in 20 off the bench for the Bullets, who crashed from fifth to ninth after carelessly conceding a staggering 25 turnovers.

Adding to their woes, wing Max Mackinnon hit his head on the floor as he slipped early in the third quarter and was unable to continue.

“Brisbane had a lot of good looks that didn’t drop, so I think there were a couple of areas where we got lucky, and we had looks that did drop,” Cairns coach Adam Forde said.

“If you change the outcome of a few of those, we find ourselves sweating a little bit.

“Obviously good to get the win and gain some points-percentage back.”

Brisbane jumped ahead 17-9 and dominated the boards 17-6 in the opening term, but that’s when the turnover epidemic started, allowing Cairns to sneak ahead 23-21 at quarter-time.

The Bullets continued to cough up the ball and they were barely hanging in, down 43-38, when McVeigh spearheaded an 11-0 run to give the Taipans total control.

Brisbane tossed away a whopping 14 first-half turnovers, before Cairns extended their lead to 67-45 midway through the third term.

Bullets forward Lat Mayen tried to inspire his side with a sensational dunk, throwing it down with two hands over both Keanu Pinder and Kyrin Galloway, but the Snakes still held sway 78-61 at three-quarter time.

Brisbane cut the gap to 81-70 before Lewis and Smith steadied the visitors.

Third-generation Bullet Rio Burton made his NBL debut, subbing in late and scoring his maiden bucket.

The 19-year-old is the son of CJ Bruton, who was a key member of Brisbane’s 2007 championship, and the grandson of Cal Bruton, who played in Brisbane’s first-ever NBL game in 1979 and starred in their 1985 title.

“Ass-kicking,” Bullets coach Will Weaver responded matter-of-fact when asked to describe the result.

“Full credit to Cairns, they did what they do really well.

“They’re a devil of a team to play against, and we made them look particularly good this evening.”