NBL Prediction: Cairns Taipans – Illawarra Hawks (21-09-2024)
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Written by
Bren Gray -
Edited by
Aleksandras Rusinovas -
18 Sep 20242 min. read
NBL basketball is back on the menu this weekend, and we’re looking at the first-round matchup between the Cairns Taipans and Illawarra Hawks this Saturday.
The Taipans didn’t have the best season last year, finishing only 12-16 and missing the playoffs.
They are hoping to improve upon their record this year, and showed some decent promise in the Blitz Cup despite going 0-4 so far. Not winning any matches might not be ideal, but it’s the performance that’s important.
| 🏀 Match prediction: Total OVER 169.5 @ 1.67 |
The Hawks did do better by winning a match, though they’re not that much sharper of a team as they finished only 14-14 last year.
Despite the Hawks showing some promise leading up to the season in the Blitz Cup, this is a tricky spot to back them. The Taipans, somewhat traditionally, don’t play as well in the Blitz Cup, and they missed some important players in that competition.
We’ll see if they’re ready for the opener, but even if they’re not, there is certainly some merit in backing the Hawks on basketball betting sites. The backcourt for the Cairns is too much to ignore, and if they’re not ready to play, they’re going to be in a bit of trouble.
It mostly comes down to how the Hawks play, which is very run-and-gun, very high scoring, and we don’t think the Taipans will have the ammunition to really overcome that. Due to the nature of the match, we say there is merit in backing the over.
The Hawks will try to outscore their opponents, and will take confidence from the fact that they’re missing some important players. The home team won’t be too happy to lose an opener like this, where the crowd will be amped up at the start of the season, so we expect a good fight from them too.
The line isn’t that big for NBL standards, and there is solid value in backing the over. Depending on the injuries, the market might move in favor of the Taipans, so we’ll just back the over.
Whether the star backcourt plays or not remains to be seen, but even without them, the over is a solid option. With them, it is excellent value, so we’ll play it safe this time around.
This NBL prediction is for guidance only and we are not responsible for your bets.
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