NBL Basketball / Andy Morris / 23 September 2008 / Leave a comment Bet Now

It was hard to separate the Crocodiles and the Taipans last season, but as NBL betting will show, there could be some daylight between them in Round 2, writes Andy Morris.

Now the two remaining Queensland teams in the competition, the Crocodiles and Taipans had virtually identical records last season. Townsville finished with one more win on the season, while Cairns had a points percentage that was fractionally better. Both made the quarter finals but got no further.

In their three meetings during the home and away season, the home club won each time. Cairns won the Round 1 match by 24 points, Townsville took the second match and Cairns captured bragging rights by winning the third meeting in Round 22 by 108-88.

It's early days in the new season, but the teams have made quite different starts to the campaign, with Cairns boasting two wins and Townsville yet to get off the mark.

The Taipans beat the South Dragons in the opening match of the season, and had a 10-point win on the road against the Blaze six days later. Townsville have only played once but it was a bad defeat, losing by 27 points at the Adelaide 36ers to leave them bottom on the ladder.

How much can be read into last season's form is open to debate, as both teams have changed their personnel in the off season, so punters wanting a piece of NBL betting should take into account the relative ability of the newcomers.

The Taipans have made two significant signings, with the acquisition of former Tigers star import Dave Thomas - captain of the Canadian national team - and former Kings centre Ian Crosswhite. On the debit side, though, they have lost a major talent as reigning NBL rookie of the year winner Nathan Jawai has gone to the NBA's Toronto Raptors. If they had been able to keep Jawai their NBL betting odds on taking out the title would have been shorter.

Townsville have released Ben Pepper and Galen Young and traded Drew Williamson to the Spirit and Greg Vanderjagt to the Blaze. In have come a crop of additions, including former Brisbane Bullets swingman Brad Williamson, Australian Boomers squad member Russell Hinder from the Kings and another ex-Kings player in Cameron Tovey.

Townsville have retained eight players from last year, though, which should give them more continuity this time. And they welcome Rosell Ellis back from injury, which is a boost.

On the negative side for the Crocs, they have a lack of size in the team, particularly on the bench. They are the smallest team in the league, and Cairns will look to exploit their advantage here.

The Taipans' troubles in recent years have been with injuries, but they start the season with a clean bill of health and look to have the edge in several departments.

The likes of Martin Cattalini and Dave Thomas are likely to dominate if given the opportunity, and Cairns look to be a solid proposition in NBL betting here. They should be taken in match odds with a fair degree of confidence.