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Sizzling Cairns are the only unbeaten team after just two NBL rounds, but Melbourne United have emerged from a tumultuous week with their first win.
The Taipans (4-0) backed up first week victories over Adelaide and Melbourne with another double.
They scored a 88-73 home victory over Melbourne (1-2) on Friday and a 91-89 away conquest of Wollongong (1-3) on Sunday.
Underlining the spread of talent in their team they didn’t have a single player score 20 in either game, with the losing opponents in both supplying the game high scorer.
Jahii Carson 24, Oscar Forman 23 and Gary Ervin 21 combined for all but 22 of the Hawks’ points, while Cairns had six double digit scorers – headed by Stephen Weigh on just 14.
Incredibly, Cairns committed just two turnovers against Wollongong, who outrebounded them 36-24 and almost wiped out an 11-point third-quarter deficit.
United, whose coach Chris Anstey left the rebranded franchise just a day after the catastrophic 28-point opening game loss to Cairns, enjoyed some success on Sunday after their back-to-back losses against the Taipans.
Import guard Jordan McRae followed up a team-leading 20 point haul in Friday’s loss with a match-high 31 in the 95-74 home thrashing of previously unbeaten New Zealand Breakers (2-1).
The Kiwi club were coming off a 101-80 home win over Adelaide (1-2), in which Corey Webster topscored with 23.
United, who are playing under interim coach Darryl McDonald, were the last of the eight teams to win a game after other first week losers, Perth and Townsville, got on the board earlier in round two.
Defending champions Perth (1-1) rebounded from an opening round home loss to the Breakers with a 69-59 victory over visiting Wollongong in Wildcat stalwart Shawn Redhage’s 300th NBL game.
Townsville (1-2) bounced back from two first-week losses and a nine-point halftime deficit in their third game to inflict a 86-81 home loss on Sydney (1-1).
Import forward Brian Conklin compiled a massive 30-point 10-rebound game for the Crocs, who responded to a halftime roasting from coach Shawn Dennis by conceding just 27 points in the second half.
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