JackJumpers light it up for home fans

The Tasmania JackJumpers returned to the winner's list in spectacular fashion beating the Sydney Kings 104-81 at MyState Bank Arena on Sunday to now take that momentum into the FIBA break.

The JackJumpers were up against it on a six-game losing slide having played in Perth on Friday night and then playing host to the Kings on Sunday afternoon with Sydney having won four straight and not played since the previous Sunday.

Tasmania shot out of the blocks for a 12-3 lead and then retained control most of the afternoon on the way to the eventual 23-point victory including 33 points in the second quarter and 29 in the fourth.

It's a third win of the season already for the JackJumpers against the Kings as they improve to a 6-8 record on the season to consolidate a top six spot and scoring a second win at MyState Bank Arena so far in NBL26.

Bryce Hamilton ended up top-scoring for the JackJumpers with 22 points, six rebounds, six assists and two steals with Ben Ayre hitting 3/4 from downtown on his way to 19 points, three assists and even two blocked shots.

Josh Bannan continued his run of career-best form with another 19 points, eight rebounds and two assists with David Johnson showing how much he's been missed with 15 points and five assists.

Captain Will Magnay also had a significant impact on return with Tasmania +28 with him out there as he finished with eight points and seven rebounds while Nick Marshall contributed eight points and eight boards.

Tyger Campbell also finished with five points and three assists, Archie Woodhill four points and a rebound, and Majok Deng four points and six rebounds.

Kendric Davis finished with 20 points and four assists for Sydney with Kouat Noi adding 18 points, and Makuach Maluach 11.

The JackJumpers were back home after playing in Perth on Friday and boosted by the presence of Will Magnay who opened the scoring, the home team went on a 10-0 scoring run early including a triple to David Johnson to be leading 12-3.

The Kings worked back into the contest despite the JackJumpers having 10 free-throw attempts to one in the opening term. The home team did go into quarter-time leading 27-24 with Josh Bannan the standout with nine points to continue his career-best form.

The JackJumpers then blew the game open to start the second quarter with the opening eight points including three-pointers to Ben Ayre and Bannan.

The lead got out to 17 later in the second quarter with back-to-back three balls too from Bryce Hamilton. With 20 free throws to 11, and just one turnover to seven from Sydney, the JackJumpers were feeling good leading 60-40 going into the half.

The fouls continued to mount in the third quarter for Sydney with Xavier Cooks collecting a fourth as did Bul Kuol, who also made it five soon after to end his night only five minutes into the second half.

Kouat Noi and Kendric Davis tried to mount a Sydney fightback, but Tasmania were still up by 17 at three quarter-time with Nick Marshall landing a triple just before the buzzer.

The turnovers mounted early in the fourth frame as the Kings attempted to mount a comeback with the JackJumpers having all the answers to complete their first win since October 26.

The JackJumpers now get to enjoy the FIBA break following a win and aren’t in action again until taking on the New Zealand Breakers at Auckland's Spark Arena on Saturday December 6.

HUNGRY JACK'S NBL SEASON 2025/26

TASMANIA JACKJUMPERS 104 (Hamilton 22, Ayre 19, Bannan 19)

SYDNEY KINGS 81 (Davis 20, Noi 18, Maluach 11)

BOX SCORE