The JackJumpers have secured their maiden victory as a franchise with a compreheinsive 81-66 victory over the Carins Tapians in Hobart as part of the NBL Blitz.
In front of another sell out crowd, Jarred McVeigh opened the game with a dunk and the JackJumpers never looked back. The JackJumpers led from start to from start to finish in a scrappy game that was highlighted by 47 fouls.
Again the JackJumpers were without Will Magnay and relied heavily on thier outside shooting. Josh Adams again led all scoreres with 15 points, Josh Maggette struggled from the field for his 14 but had a great all around game with 6 rebounds 4 assists and 4 steals. While Clint Steindl, Mikhale McKintosh and Jarred Mcveigh all added 12 points.
Cairns import Josh Zimmerman was the Taipans best on the floor, being able to score consistently inside the paint. Nate Jawai also was looking dangerous early , using his size close to the basket against the smaller Tasmanian players. However foul trouble and the JackJumpers targeting his lack of speed on defense saw him play limited minutes.
A great sign tonight was seeing Josh Magette willingness to shoot and attack the basket. He had come in touted a pass first point guard, which was saw in the opening Blitz game against the Bullets, but he didn’t pass up any open shots in game 2. Despite not having a great best shooting night (2/11 from the field) it was ability to regularly get to the foul line (7/9) that will impress coach Scott Roth.
Embed from Getty ImagesKey Take-aways
Defensive intensity
The JackJumpers brought much stronger defensive pressure compared to their opening match, forcing the taipans into 24 turnovers. Coach Scott Roth has advised he plays a defensive minded game, and there was a hint out there tonight that players were out to impress their coach om the defensive end, looking to win gametime ahead of the NBL season.
Where is Nikita
Despite the win, there is a bit of concearn in the lack of court time and impact from Next Star Nikita Mikhailovskii. He only managed 5 minute on court tonight, and during the offence he often was pushed into the outside corners waiting for the ball to swing around.
He seems down on confidence, and the fact Roth kept him on the sidelines for the final quarter as the lead ballooned out to double figures was a telling sign. Hopefully we’ll see more action for him at the blitz, and some plays run for him to get him involved in the game.
Lack of inside presence
We knew that with the roster they put together that there would be a lot of outside shooting, and this was evident tonight with a lot playing a 5-out offense for long stretches. I’m curious if this will continue when Will Magnay returns to the lineup, as he thrives in the post, and possesses a great pick and role game. Hopefully we see a bit more of McKintosh or Josh Perry presenting inside in the remaining pre-season games.
