The Adelaide 36ers have extended their unbeaten run in the NBL to five games after blowing out the Taipans in Cairns with a 96-83 win.
The Snakes looked to be in for a rough Monday night when the 36ers shot out to a double-digit lead courtesy of Nathan Sobey, who looked determined to give his former club a wake-up call.
The Warrnambool-born guard was an energiser bunny on his old floor and slammed home two dunks before a corked wrist in the second quarter seemed to slow his output before he rebounded to finish on 19 points.
Hurt by a Sydney Kings comeback earlier in the round, the Taipans sparked one of their own to end the first quarter just three points behind, with their equal-opportunity offence coming from Mitch McCarron, Nate Jawai and Mark Worthington.
Cairns then continued in the second quarter to lead by nine points when centre Jawai began to find his rhythm after missing a two-handed jam in the first quarter.
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Adelaide big man Daniel Johnson responded, though, and his input was critical to the 36ers regaining the lead early in the third term - one they wouldn't relinquish.
The Taipans' shooting percentage abandoned them when they needed it the most in the dying stages, finishing the game at 41 per cent from the field compare with Adelaide's 52 per cent.
The battle between the bigs was particularly fascinating - 36ers rock Daniel Johnson earned bragging rights over Jawai with 27 points and nine rebounds to the Cairns centre's 17 points and seven rebounds.
Adelaide point man Jerome Randle was successful in shutting down Cairns counterpart Travis Trice, who left the floor with five points to his name.
Adelaide return home to take on the Sydney Kings on Friday night in a top-of-the-table clash, while the Taipans will remain at the Snakepit to battle the Illawarra Hawks on Saturday.
36ers coach Joey Wright said Randle and Sobey's lock-down defence of Trice and Cameron Gliddon was crucial.
"Trice and Gliddon were non-factors tonight, and that doesn't happen often. It was a huge area we targeted coming into this game," Wright said.
The Taipans have lost two in a row at home, and coach Aaron Fearne was blunt.
"If I was a fan I would be pissed off and disappointed. It is embarrassing for me that we would come here and play like that," he said.
