Bolden & Beautiful: Brown leads Taipans' Brisbane 'butt kicking'

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American import Jaylon Brown ($277,000) revealed a team talk after being blown out by the New Zealand Breakers in Round 3 has been the catalyst for the Cairns Taipans going 5-1 in the past 30 days after manhandling the Bullets 107-85 in Round 7 on Thursday, October 29, 2026, in Brisbane.

The 32-year-old point guard said: "We had a talk after that New Zealand game as a team that we've just got to be ourselves and be us as a team.

"We know what we're looking for on the floor. I think we just had to step in there and come into practice that next day and be like: 'OK, this is who we are, and we're going to stick to it, stick to our guns for the remainder of the games, remainder of the season'.

"We're doing a good job of reminding ourselves this is who we are. It doesn't matter if we struggle at some point because we know we can turn it back up in the next quarter, next minute, whatever the case may be."

Brown held up his end of the bargain at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre with 19 points (7-for-14), five assists, three rebounds, and a steal in 27:41 minutes, while Jack McVeigh ($349,800) put up a game-high 23 and leftie Reyne Smith ($156,300) came within a point of his career high with 20 points off the bench.

"I think we're improving each and every day. All our guys are taking each day as seriously as we can, and we're focusing on the little things that we can get done," Brown added.

"It's basically going on the court and doing those things that we work on every day in practice. I love the outcomes that we're having, and we're going to keep improving."

Now healthy, Jonah Bolden ($133,600) is putting together a solid stretch after games and dominated on the glass with 13 boards.

"He's a really big part of our team," Brown said of Bolden.

"He brings a certain type of energy and a certain level that we need.

"Every game that he comes out, he proves it. He's out there making plays on defence and offence, and he's doing a great job of that.

"I love playing with him. He's a great teammate and a great player."

Taipans' head coach Adam Forde channelled his inner Bryce Cotton ($473,900) when asked about the Queensland rivalry clash. Cairns are 2-0 this season.

"No, no headline," Forde said.

"The NBL loves rivalries. I'm not getting caught up in all that."

But what Forde did get caught up in was: "Brisbane had a lot of good looks that didn't drop for them, so I think there were a couple of areas where we got lucky. We had looks that did drop.

"You change the outcome of a few of those, and we find ourselves sweating a little bit.

"But obviously, naturally, to get the win and gain some of the points percentage back."

Cairns are 6-4 but have a negative +/- (917 vs 949) at 99.6%. The Bullets dropped to 4-5 but remain equal on wins with fifth-placed South East Melbourne Phoenix.

Bullets' head coach was more succinct about the "non-rivalry."

"Arse-kicking," Weaver said.

"Full respect to Cairns. They did what they do really well. They turn people over, they block shots, they collapse on you.

"At the other end, they have great skill, and they play for each other.

"That's a testament to those players and that coaching staff. They're a difficult team to play against, and we made them look particularly good this evening.

"It's a simple game for complicated people, and we have to keep focused on the boring little details that add up.

"At this point in the season, we have an identity. At this point in their careers, these players have an identity.

"We've got to reflect and bring that identity to one of, if not the toughest place to play, against a team that's loaded with superstars.

"Embrace and get excited about the challenge of going on the road and taking care of enough details to give ourselves a chance to win."

Watch

NBL27

Brisbane Bullets vs Cairns Taipans | Round 7 Highlights

Watch the highlights as the Brisbane Bullets take on the Cairns Taipans in Round 7 of NBL27 on October 29, 2026.

What you need to know

• The Cairns Taipans beat the Brisbane Bullets 107-85 at Brisbane Entertainment Centre in Round 7 of NBL27, their second win against Brisbane this season.
• Brisbane led 17-9 midway through the first quarter, but Cairns won all four quarters, 23-21, 34-21, 21-19 and 29-24, and never trailed after a layup from Jaylin Galloway ($196,400) put them ahead 23-21 with 14 seconds left in the first.
• Jack McVeigh ($349,800) top-scored with 23 points on 9-from-17, including 5-from-9 from three, and Taine Murray ($99,700) led Brisbane with 20 off the bench on 7-from-14, including 5-from-10 from three.
• Cairns made 20-from-48 from three to Brisbane's 8-from-28, a 36-point gap from deep in a game decided by 22, while Brisbane won the points inside the arc 44-42 and at the line 17-5.
• Brisbane won the rebounds 45-37, including 15 offensive boards, but turned it over 25 times to Cairns' 15, and Cairns finished with 14 steals.

Milestones

• Reyne Smith ($156,300) scored 20 points on 8-from-14, his second-highest NBL total, one short of the 21 he scored against Melbourne United on October 3.
• Cairns' 20 threes are the most by any team in an NBL27 game. The previous best was 18, by Cairns against Illawarra on October 11 and by South East Melbourne against Adelaide on October 24.
• Cairns' 14 steals are also the most by any team in an NBL27 game, one more than Melbourne United's 13 against South East Melbourne on October 10.
• Brisbane's 25 turnovers are the most by any team in an NBL27 game. No other team has turned it over more than 18 times.
• The 22-point margin is Cairns' biggest win of NBL27, and their third road win (6-4 overall).
• Taine Murray scored 20 in his third NBL27 game, eight more than his first two combined, and made five threes after making one in those two games.
• Malique Lewis ($207,900) scored 16, his best of NBL27, one more than the 15 he scored against Brisbane on October 8.
• Jonah Bolden ($133,600) had four steals, his NBL27 high and equal to the most by any player in an NBL27 game, to go with 13 rebounds.
• Keanu Pinder ($300,000) is 16 rebounds short of 1,000 career NBL rebounds (984), and Jack McVeigh is 117 points short of 3,000 career NBL points (2,883).
• Mitch Norton ($160,600) played his 403rd NBL game and is 89 points short of 3,000 career NBL points (2,911).
• ‍Shaun Bruce ($76,500) played his 386th NBL game, 14 short of 400.

Cairns Taipans

• Jack McVeigh top-scored with 23 points and three steals on 9-from-17, including 5-from-9 from three, and scored five points in an 11-0 second-quarter run that took Cairns from 43-38 to 54-38.
• Reyne Smith scored 20 off the bench on 8-from-14, including 4-from-9 from three, with no turnovers in 24 minutes.
• Jaylon Brown ($277,000) added 19 points and a team-high five assists on 7-from-14, including 3-from-8 from three.
• Malique Lewis scored 16 on 6-from-12, including 3-from-9 from three, with two steals and no turnovers.
• Jonah Bolden had seven points, a game-high 13 rebounds and four steals off the bench, with three assists and two blocks.
• Keanu Pinder had eight points, four assists and two blocks on 4-from-9.
• Luke Paul ($115,000) scored seven off the bench on 2-from-4, including 2-from-3 from three, with three assists in 10 minutes.
• Cairns shot 41-from-83 from the field, 20-from-48 from three and 5-from-8 at the line, with 37 rebounds, 26 assists and 15 turnovers.

Brisbane Bullets

• Taine Murray top-scored with 20 points off the bench on 7-from-14, including 5-from-10 from three, in 21 minutes.
• Nate Hinton ($277,000) added 14 points, six rebounds and three steals on 4-from-9, and went 6-from-8 at the line.
• Jaylin Williams ($277,000) had 12 points, five rebounds, two steals and two blocks on 5-from-8, including 2-from-5 from three.
• Raul Neto ($277,000) had eight points and four assists on 3-from-9, with four turnovers.
• Archie Woodhill ($58,500) scored seven off the bench on 3-from-4 in 13 minutes.
• Tyrell Harrison ($336,100) had five points, six rebounds (four offensive) and four assists on 2-from-8, with five turnovers.
• Mitch Norton scored six off the bench, four of them at the line, with three turnovers.
• Brisbane shot 30-from-70 from the field, 8-from-28 from three and 17-from-24 at the line, with 45 rebounds, 16 assists and 25 turnovers.