Jack to get jump on Bullets

Sunday, November 5, 2023

"I know it’s going to be a great game and the crowd is going to be loud giving us that energy we need."

The Tasmania JackJumpers have been presented with an almost immediate opportunity to atone for their Round 5 loss to Brisbane, and will once again take on the Bullets this weekend – just six days after they last met.

Tasmania fell by three points last weekend, largely thanks to the clutch, 28-point performance of veteran guard Nathan Sobey.

The Bullets have since played South East Melbourne, and ran away with a 16-point victory against the Phoenix on Thursday night to mark the return of Aron Baynes from suspension.

Star forward Jack McVeigh says the JackJumpers are relishing the opportunity to play an opposition that defeated them so recently.

“It was a disappointing weekend, but as long as we learn from it and grow as a team, those weekends can help us take steps forward,” McVeigh said.

“It’s always fun to play a team back-to-back when they’ve just beaten you so to get to play in front of Launceston, it’s going to be fun and we’re all excited for it.

“They’re (Brisbane) playing some really good basketball right now. I know it’s going to be a great game and the crowd is going to be loud giving us that energy we need.”

Tyrell Harrison continued his run of starting at the center position, despite the inclusion of Baynes into the lineup on Thursday, and last time the Bullets met the JackJumpers he played over 32 minutes in the win.

Harrison, Baynes and Zikarsky will all likely, once again, see the floor for Brisbane against Tasmania – while the JackJumpers leading center pair of Marcus Lee and Fabijan Krslovic continue to contend with consistent foul trouble.

“It’s always hard with someone coming back,” McVeigh said of Baynes. “That’s something you’ve got to play with because of the different rotations and different roles.

“A player of his calibre is always good and it’ll make the team even harder to beat. It’s going to be a fun battle out there.”

McVeigh became the first player to surpass 1,000 career points for the JackJumpers in last week’s loss to Brisbane, and continues to hold the mantle of the club’s all-time leading scorer.

“That was pretty cool,” he said of the milestone.

“I was surprised at that and hopefully I can stay the all-time scorer for a lot of years and not let Milt take that from me.”

The JackJumpers and Bullets clash on Saturday night at 5:30pm AEDT, live on ESPN via Kayo.