ROBERT Franks nailed the marginal free throws and made a crucial steal as the Adelaide 36ers fought back from 19-points down to complete a 78-75 victory over Cairns Taipans on Friday at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre.
The American forward got fouled by Tahjere McCall and cooly sank his freebies with two seconds remaining, before sealing the come-from-behind win with the steal on Shannon Scott as time expired.
See: San Miguel passes late Meralco test to warm up for Converge showdown
It was an amazing turnaround for Adelaide with Kai Sotto limited to being a spectator during the fightback as he went scoreless in seven minutes of play.
Nonetheless, the reinforcements got the job done for the 36ers, who came alive after trailing, 35-16, in the second period.
Antonius Cleveland finished with 24 points, eight rebounds, four assists, and two steals while Franks scored 15 points on a perfect 7-of-7 clip from the charity stripe, on top of seven boards, four assists, and two steals.
Daniel Johnson added 10 points and nine rebounds, and Hyrum Harris and Sunday Dech both got eight each to push Adelaide’s record to 6-5 with back-to-back wins in the 2022-23 NBL season.
The 36ers hit the road anew again this Sunday against the Sydney Kings, hopeful to gain momentum from this amazing comeback.
It was a tough loss to swallow for McCall who had 24 points, but had six turnovers in the shocking defeat.
Cairns dropped to a 7-5 record after this stunner.
Get more of the latest sports news & updates on SPIN.ph