Cheatham: 'When Bryce is going, get out of way'

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36ers star Bryce Cotton added to his 40-piece collection in a "gritty" 105-101 overtime win against a resilient Cairns Taipans in Round 9 of NBL26 in Adelaide on Sunday, November 16, 2025.

Cotton, 32, finished with a game-high 41 points in 42 minutes on 11-from-27 from the field, including 7-from-19 from three.

"For me, when you’ve got a guy like Bryce Cotton that’s going like that, you kind of have to get out of the way a little bit or try to ride that wave as much as possible," teammate Zylan Cheatham said.

"Tonight, him and Ice did a really good job of leading us in scoring.

"I’m a glue guy. I don’t really require much. I’m really good at playing off of guys, and if someone’s going, I’ll do anything to win. I got my shots, I got a couple of looks, I missed a couple of free throws. But for me, it’s whatever is expected night in and night out.

"Tonight it was stopping (Jack) McVeigh, which I didn’t do a very good job of, but I tried to hang my hat defensively tonight."

Cheatham finished with 16 points, eight rebounds, four assists, a steal and a block in more than 38 minutes.

36ers head coach Mike Wells praised his ball club for sticking with it when the Taipans made a run.

"That was a really gritty win," Wells said.

"I thought our group really hung together. You know, some miscommunication, some breakdowns, but what I really loved was we had great energy throughout the game. You know, we’ve been playing a lot, there was no “us being tired”, none of that.

"I thought that we just had a few miscues in the first half, and give them credit – they played really, really well and they made shots. And Jack got going, right, in the first half, and he’s good. He’s a good player, and those things happen with good players.

"What I really loved was I thought it was a gritty third quarter. I thought we grinded, I thought we set our defense. I thought guys got into the matchups and, you know, our focus was back. We didn’t see a lot of breakdowns, and there was a toughness and a physicality. Instead of them being able to run their offense, I thought we affected it and we grinded on some things, so they were taking more of the shots that we want instead of the shots that they want.

"What I’ve seen here lately in this league across the board is, just like every league, in the fourth quarter teams dial in because everybody’s trying to win – you’re seeing it night after night. And man, they brought it in the fourth. I still thought we were competing, we were trying, guys were saying the right things, our communication was at a really, really high level. There was never a sense of panic or 'oh no'. That never happened.

"The guys were there and I thought we had a lot of great efforts from a lot of different people. But our offensive rebounds – 22 ORBs – our free throw attempts – 38, 30-for-38 – those kind of things. Eleven steals, that’s got to be a season high, I’m not sure if it is but I would imagine.

"And then there was a whole bunch of individuals. This guy right here (Cheatham) almost goes triple-double every night for me. And I know he wanted the ball more and there were those opportunities, but there were rhythm things where we just didn’t get going for a while. And then it was all of a sudden like we’re getting steals and we’re running out, and you know, Bryce is out there doing Bryce things.

"I give Isaac White a lot of credit – his start in the third quarter kind of helped us set that defense. Z was locked into McVeigh. You know, Matt does his thing. I want to say also a couple other things: Isaac Humphries – just what he does in Channel 2, what he does blocking shots, rebounding late – but him in Channel 2 defense, our pick-and-roll defense, he’s just there for the guys.

"And then last, you know, there’s a whole bunch I can go down the list, but Troy got off the plane I don’t know how many hours ago – 30 hours ago. He scripted with the coaches super fast, it’s almost like live basketball because myself and Marco are just flying around out there. But you almost just do the mini-prep. You have to do those things in the NBA, so it’s not unusual to me, it’s not unusual to Troy."

Import Troy Brown Jnr finished with nine points, seven rebounds, four assists and two steals in his first game for the 36ers, arriving less than two days before tip-off.

Key Details

• Result: Adelaide 36ers 105 def. Cairns Taipans 101 (OT)
• When: 16th November 2025
• Where: Adelaide Entertainment Centre, Adelaide
• Attendance: 9,878
• Standings

By the Numbers

• Bryce Cotton (Adelaide 36ers) starred with 41 points, one rebound, eight assists, and four steals in 42 minutes.
• Jack McVeigh (Cairns Taipans) scored 39 points, had eight rebounds, seven assists, and two blocks received in 43 minutes.

What Happened

The Adelaide 36ers and Cairns Taipans delivered a classic encounter with a staggering 36 lead changes. The 36ers established an early advantage, leading 51-50 at halftime behind Cotton's aggressive scoring. They extended their lead to 78-68 heading into the fourth quarter, but the Taipans rallied back with a determined 23-13 run to force overtime.

Cotton dominated the critical moments, including seven three-pointers from 19 attempts while adding 12 free throws on 13 attempts. His clutch shooting in overtime helped Adelaide outscore Cairns 14-10 in the extra period to secure the four-point victory.

Isaac Humphries provided crucial support for Adelaide with 18 points and 13 rebounds, including eight offensive boards that created additional scoring opportunities. His interior presence helped the 36ers dominate the rebounding battle 49-40, with 22 offensive rebounds proving decisive in generating second-chance points.

Despite shooting at a higher percentage (50.67% compared to Adelaide's 39.76%), Cairns was undone by their turnover troubles. The Taipans committed 15 turnovers to Adelaide's eight, with Andrew Andrews responsible for seven of those miscues. Adelaide's defense was active throughout, recording 11 steals to Cairns' one, creating additional possessions that ultimately made the difference.

The battle between Cotton and McVeigh was a highlight, with McVeigh shooting an efficient 15-from-25 including four three-pointers. However, Cairns struggled to find consistent secondary scoring, with only Mojave King (21 points) and Marcus Lee (15 points) reaching double figures. Adelaide's defensive adjustments in overtime limited Cairns to just 10 points in the extra period, sealing a hard-fought win for the home side.