McCarron: 'Focus has always been on opening round'

Adelaide 36ers guard Mitch McCarron said the target has always been on the opening match in Brisbane but Thursday night’s NBL Blitz match against Tasmania must be a step in the right direction.

The 189cm guard said his side has several improvements to make before facing the undefeated JackJumpers from 4.30pm on Thursday.

“We want to play better on Thursday night, but it’s all about going and getting that win in Brisbane, that’s all that matters,” McCarron said.

“The focus for us right is to go and figure it out and get things on the same page for the start of the regular season.

“It’s been two disappointing games for us, but we must lock into the stuff we are running and executing things at the moment.

“We are not putting too much energy into the results; we are focusing more on the process.”

McCarron said this season’s NBL Blitz has been a polar opposite to the past two campaigns, Adelaide going into this year’s week-long tournament as the reigning two-time Loggins-Bruton Cup champions.

“We have had two really good pre-season tournaments in the past but that didn’t equate to winning games early in the season,” McCarron said. “We are now hoping to reverse that trend.

“It must be both ends for us at the moment, we are not scoring the ball at a high level but a big part of that is we are not generating easy shots out of our defense either.

“The best teams in this league have always created offense out of their defense, whether that’s full court pressure or rebounding.

“If you are constantly getting the ball out of the net, it’s going to be pretty hard to outscore teams.”

Off-season recruit Isaac Humphries has been a shining light for the 36ers across the first two games and McCarron is thrilled to have the 211cm big man back dominating the keyway.

“Isaac’s been great, he looks great, he’s super confident and he is finishing really well around the rim,” McCarron said.

“He has been the one positive out of the first two games and the way he is feeling about his game right now.

“Everyone has to lift to that level now to go with him.”

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Along with Humphries, another returning 36er, Jason Cadee, has also put his best foot forward.

“It’s good to see Jase playing free, he’s a great shooter, a great playmaker and we will need all of that this year,” McCarron said.

Thursday night’s battle against Tasmania is going to be a huge test for Adelaide, but McCarron said sometimes a slow build could be beneficial.

“I have been on teams which have struggled in the pre-season before, the point differential for us right now isn’t great, but at the same time once the season starts, everyone’s record is 0-0,” McCarron said.

“If we walk into Brisbane in that opening game and get that win, we are 1-0 and no one will remember what happened before.

“Then also I’ve been on teams that have been hot in the pre-season, like us last year, and all of a sudden, you’re on struggle street come round four or five.”

You can watch all the action on Kayo Freebies from 4.20pm on Thursday.