Perth NBL coach Trevor Gleeson has warned his team against trying to unleash any "Hollywood blocks" in their attempt to shut down Taipans centre Nate Jawai during Friday night's semi-final opener in Cairns.
Jawai looms as a potential match winner in the three-match series, with the former Wildcat playing an important role in helping Cairns land second spot.
The 30-year-old, who helped the Wildcats win last season's title, scored 22 points and pulled down nine rebounds earlier this month when the Taipans beat Perth 85-77 in Cairns.
Wildcats centre Matt Knight missed that game through concussion, but Gleeson felt his team let Jawai off the leash too easily.
And he particularly wasn't impressed by their attempts at fancy blocks.
"After the game, I said we were going for Hollywood blocks, and we don't need to do that and get out of position," Gleeson said.
"No one is going to move Nate when he's two feet from the bucket, so we've got to do a better job with that.
"Having Matt in the line-up this time is better."
The Wildcats scraped into the playoffs for the 31st straight season after posting wins over Sydney and Melbourne in the final round.
Gleeson says his team thrive under pressure, and he's confident it will serve them well during the finals series.
"Pressure is a funny thing. Sometimes, it breaks teams. But it seems to bring out the best in us," Gleeson said.
"We know when the pressure's on and the crunch time comes, we trust each other and we believe in each other.
"We're a Championship team. We've been to the top of the mountain. We don't choke when the game's on the line. That builds in the last couple of minutes of the game when it's close."
Cairns enter the semi-final series in hot form after winning six of their past seven games, including two straight against ladder leaders Adelaide.
But the Wildcats are also in strong form after winning four of their past five.
Importantly, star imports Casey Prather and Bryce Cotton are firing on all cylinders, with the pair combining for 95 points over the past two games.
Two of the four games between Perth and Cairns this season have gone to overtime.
Another was decided by two points when a controversial video review went Cairns' way in the last 10 seconds.
HEAD-TO-HEAD THIS SEASON:
* October 8 - Wildcats beat Taipans 84-74 in overtime in Perth
* January 16 - Taipans beat Wildcats 80-78 in Cairns
* January 20 - Wildcats beat Taipans 84-78 in overtime in Perth
* February 5 - Taipans beat Wildcats 85-77 in Cairns
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