The Taipans were in devastating form all night, racing out to an early lead and never once looking back.

Rosell Ellis (27 points, 14 boards, one assist) was the Dragons’ go-to man for most of the night, pouring in 10 points in the first term and matching it with Kevin Owens under the rim. But despite Ellis’ best efforts there was no stopping Cairns’ Darnell Mee (27 points, six rebounds, four assists) on his way to 17 for the quarter.

The Dragons battled to find the net early on as Cairns shot out to a 15-point lead by midway through the term. The Taipans talls proved a tough challenge for the undersized Dragons, who had a hard time working their way to the basket all night.

It was one-way traffic for most of the opening term and, with few offensive highlights, the Dragons went into the first break down 23-38.

Cairns opened the second term with a quick two points that stretched their lead to 17. Mee and Martin Cattalini continued the Taipans’ scoring attack until a slam dunk from Joe Ingles saw the margin trimmed to 13 and the momentum swing in the Dragons’ favour.

Sharp shooting from Ellis kept the Dragons’ hopes of a fightback alive, but the Taipans were largely unstoppable from the field and the margin was held to 11 points for most of the term.

The Dragons, however, were not about to lie down and worked their way back to within four points by the major break, thanks largely to the efforts of Brent Hobba. After a remarkable fightback the visitors went into halftime trailing 58-62.

With South hot on their heels the Taipans came out firing in the third, shoring up a 13-point lead within three minutes of play. The Dragons were reduced to mere spectators as the home side unleashed a barrage of baskets that soon saw all hope of a second-half charge disappear.

The Dragons’ shooting woes continued in the third, with just one of their first six attempts netting a score. Misfired shots at goal and insufficient muscle power under the rim stretched the Dragons’ deficit to 21 points with three minutes left on the clock.

Matt Burston checked into the game late in the third term but there seemed few avenues to halt the rising carnage. South at last found some run, with nine unanswered points reducing the margin to 13 but a late goal to Cairns saw the home side enter the final break with a 15-point buffer.

Shane Heal fired early in the fourth for the Dragons, netting two three-pointers to again offer fans some hope of a late challenge. The margin was cut to single digits by midway through the term but just when the Dragons found momentum, the Taipans struck back.

Cairns dominated the final minutes of play, overpowering the Dragons at both ends of the court to work their way out to a game-high 24-point advantage. The Taipans finally booked their place in the second knockout final with a 118-97 win.

Heal later praised his team's efforts in reaching the quarter finals.

"This team's got plenty of character. We've been written off all year, we were undermanned, undersized, and we gave ourselves a legit chance coming in here tonight, just really through character," Heal said.

"We were going to have to play a perfect game to be able to (win), but Cairns played well so you take your hat off to them as well."

Cairns Taipans 118 (Mee 27, Cattalini 20, Owens 19)
South Dragons 97 (Ellis 27, Franklin 24, Heal 22)
@ Cairns Convention Centre, 15/02/07