Illawarra defeated Cairns by 18 points, largely due to superior shooting efficiency and a significant disparity in field goal percentage. Illawarra connected on 48.7% of their shots compared to Cairns' 37.1%, which proved decisive in the second half when Illawarra outscored Cairns 42-29 in the final 24 minutes. Tyler Harvey led the way for the Hawks, shooting 7-of-13 from the field and 4-of-9 from three to tally 18 points, while JaVale McGee provided stability in the paint with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Illawarra's ability to limit turnovers to just five, compared to Cairns' 14, prevented the Taipans from generating many extra possessions. Sam Waardenburg led Cairns in scoring with 17 points, but the team struggled to maintain consistency, shooting just 31.0% from three-point range and turning the ball over nearly three times per game.
| Player | MIN | PTS | REB | AST | FG | FG% | 3P | 3P% | FT | FT% | OR | DR | STL | BLK | TO | PF | +/- |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ⭐ Tyler HarveyT. Harvey (#1) (C) | 28:50 | 18 | 5 | 3 | 7-13 | 53.9 | 4-9 | 44.4 | 0-0 | 0.0 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | +24 |
| ⭐ JaVale McGeeJ. McGee | 17:50 | 16 | 10 | 2 | 7-12 | 58.3 | 0-1 | 0.0 | 2-2 | 100.0 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | +10 |
| ⭐ Sam FrolingS. Froling (#13) | 21:08 | 16 | 6 | 4 | 7-10 | 70.0 | 0-0 | 0.0 | 2-4 | 50.0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | +20 |
| ⭐ Wani Swaka Lo BulukW. Swaka Lo Buluk (#9) | 22:41 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 4-6 | 66.7 | 2-3 | 66.7 | 0-0 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | +23 |
| ⭐ Biwali BaylesB. Bayles (#14) | 17:38 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0-3 | 0.0 | 0-1 | 0.0 | 0-0 | 0.0 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | +7 |
| Quentin PetersonQ. Peterson (#77) | 22:53 | 14 | 3 | 3 | 5-10 | 50.0 | 3-7 | 42.9 | 1-1 | 100.0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | -1 |
| Quentin PetersonQ. Peterson (#77) | 22:53 | 14 | 3 | 3 | 5-10 | 50.0 | 3-7 | 42.9 | 1-1 | 100.0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | -1 |
| Daniel GridaD. Grida (#11) | 15:35 | 11 | 2 | 1 | 4-6 | 66.7 | 0-1 | 0.0 | 3-5 | 60.0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | +21 |
| Mason PeatlingM. Peatling (#22) | 15:20 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 2-5 | 40.0 | 0-1 | 0.0 | 1-2 | 50.0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | -4 |
| William HickeyW. Hickey (#6) | 22:38 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 2-7 | 28.6 | 0-1 | 0.0 | 0-0 | 0.0 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 | +16 |
| Jackson BallJ. Ball (#2) | 03:08 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0-2 | 0.0 | 0-2 | 0.0 | 1-2 | 50.0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -6 |
| Todd BlanchfieldT. Blanchfield (#21) | 06:14 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0-2 | 0.0 | 0-2 | 0.0 | 1-2 | 50.0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -8 |
| Johny NarkleJ. Narkle (#16) | 03:08 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0-0 | 0.0 | 0-0 | 0.0 | 0-0 | 0.0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | -6 |
| Luca YatesL. Yates (#19) | 03:08 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-2 | 0.0 | 0-1 | 0.0 | 0-0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -6 |
| TEAM TOTALS | - | 96 | 46 | 20 | 38-78 | 48.7 | 9-29 | 31.0 | 11-18 | 61.1 | 11 | 35 | 8 | 3 | 5 | 21 | - |
| Player | MIN | PTS | REB | AST | FG | FG% | 3P | 3P% | FT | FT% | OR | DR | STL | BLK | TO | PF | +/- |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ⭐ Sam WaardenburgS. Waardenburg (#21) (C) | 28:27 | 17 | 3 | 1 | 4-8 | 50.0 | 2-4 | 50.0 | 7-7 | 100.0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | -20 |
| ⭐ Jack McVeighJ. McVeigh (#9) | 33:30 | 16 | 1 | 1 | 5-11 | 45.5 | 1-4 | 25.0 | 5-6 | 83.3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | -17 |
| ⭐ Mojave KingM. King | 26:23 | 11 | 5 | 1 | 5-9 | 55.6 | 1-4 | 25.0 | 0-1 | 0.0 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -31 |
| ⭐ Kyrin GallowayK. Galloway (#14) | 18:14 | 9 | 9 | 0 | 3-7 | 42.9 | 3-6 | 50.0 | 0-0 | 0.0 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | -5 |
| ⭐ Andrew AndrewsA. Andrews (#12) | 31:32 | 7 | 3 | 6 | 3-9 | 33.3 | 0-4 | 0.0 | 1-2 | 50.0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 4 | -20 |
| Admiral SchofieldA. Schofield (#5) | 19:39 | 10 | 3 | 2 | 2-5 | 40.0 | 2-5 | 40.0 | 4-4 | 100.0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 5 | +1 |
| Kody StattmannK. Stattmann (#6) | 08:26 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0-1 | 0.0 | 0-1 | 0.0 | 6-6 | 100.0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | +8 |
| Kyle AdnamK. Adnam (#4) | 14:50 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 1-5 | 20.0 | 0-1 | 0.0 | 0-0 | 0.0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | +0 |
| Lloyd McVeighL. McVeigh (#1) | 05:20 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0-3 | 0.0 | 0-1 | 0.0 | 0-0 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +4 |
| Marcus LeeM. Lee (#24) | 13:42 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 0-4 | 0.0 | 0-0 | 0.0 | 0-0 | 0.0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | -10 |
| TEAM TOTALS | - | 78 | 38 | 14 | 23-62 | 37.1 | 9-30 | 30.0 | 23-26 | 88.5 | 7 | 31 | 3 | 2 | 14 | 19 | - |
| Team | eFG% | TOV% | ORB% | FT Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Illawarra | 54.5% | 5.5% | 26.2% | 23.1% |
| Cairns | 44.4% | 16.0% | 16.7% | 41.9% |
eFG% (Effective Field Goal %): Adjusts FG% for 3-pointers being worth more
TOV% (Turnover Rate): Turnovers per 100 possessions (lower is better)
ORB% (Offensive Rebound Rate): % of available offensive rebounds grabbed
FT Rate: Free throw attempts relative to field goal attempts