36ers ready for big Tassie tussle

Reigning NBL champions Tasmania JackJumpers will be in Adelaide on Sunday afternoon looking to get their season back on track.

The JackJumpers fell to Illawarra Hawks 109-76 last Saturday and will face a home battle against Sydney Kings on Friday night before making the trip to the City of Churches.

How Tasmania responds against the Kings on Friday night will be key, with the JackJumpers looking to bounce back after an uncharacteristic outing in Wollongong.

Adelaide will also be looking for a response after last Sunday’s 106-79 loss to United in Melbourne and will look to make some adjustments before the JackJumpers arrive in town. 

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THE KEY
Import duo Jordan Crawford and Milton Doyle are back for the NBL25 season and are the main men running the JackJumpers’ offensive system.

Both Crawford and Doyle will need to score heavily and have the talent to put big numbers on the board, Adelaide must contain their influence.

A match-up of Crawford against Kendric Davis at the point guard spot looms large, while a number of players will get the job on Doyle, with Sunday Dech likely to start on the gamebreaker.

Factor in Paris Olympian Will Magnay in the paint and his battle with Isaac Humphries and Montrezl Harrell will also go a long way to which side gets the victory on Sunday.

THE SECRET
Tasmania has brought back most of their core local content this season minus the big omission of the NBA-bound Jack McVeigh, but the JackJumpers’ depth is huge.

Majok Deng, Fabian Krslovic and Gorjak Gak will give Magnay significant back-up in the frontcourt battle against Humphries and Harrell.

But Adelaide can gain the advantage in the backcourt, with Tasmania missing Sean MacDonald, a lot of focus will go onto Crawford at the point guard spot, alongside import swingman Craig Sword, who has been brought in for his defence, expect him to spend time on DJ Vasiljevic.

Tasmania has some outside scoring threats in Anthony Drmic and Clint Steindl, while never underestimate the impact of Reuben Te Rangi.

DEPTH CHART
Crawford / Barker
Drmic / Sword
Doyle / Steindl
Te Rangi / Deng
Magnay / Krslovic / Gak

FINAL WORD
How Adelaide responds to the challenge after last Sunday’s loss to Melbourne United will be key against the JackJumpers.

Tasmania will be coming off a Friday night clash against the Kings and the 36ers will know from the past two rounds to be ready for a team backing up for the second time in the space of 48 hours.

Adelaide must be ready to go from the opening tip against a JackJumpers side who will be keen to make a statement, the heat at the defensive end will be turned up and how the 36ers attack the advantages will be intriguing.

Another big crowd at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre awaits for a 36ers side looking to get back in the winners’ circle.