36ers' Season Hits 'Now or Never' Territory

Friday, January 13, 2023

The Adelaide 36ers are fighting for their postseason lives after a 98-82 loss on Thursday night to the Tasmania JackJumpers saw them drop to eighth on the ladder.

Although the 36ers have won three of their last five games, the congested and tight nature of the ladder means every win or loss could see any team rise or fall dramatically on a nightly basis.

Following their loss against the JackJumpers, Adelaide coach CJ Bruton is not dwelling, but moving forward.

“We know what we’re playing for, and we need to be ready, Bruton said.

“We’ve got some work to do, and we need to be ready to go.”

The 36ers head to Perth on Saturday night from the opposite end of the country, to match-up against their rivals in the Wildcats’ first ever open-air game.

“We’re about to go into an environment where every possession, every game counts,” Bruton said.

“From the time that we started this season, we had to play catch up and every team has had a little patch where you’re playing and travelling, so there’s no excuses.

“It’s go and compete, and be ready to go.

“We’ve got some work to do, and we need to be ready to go.”

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Just let Robert Franks play ball - he'll do it all himself ?<br><br>Watch <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBL23?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBL23</a> live on ESPN via Kayo Sports + Foxtel ? <a href="https://t.co/wHbevzwbCb">pic.twitter.com/wHbevzwbCb</a></p>— NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1613478617773936640?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 12, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Adelaide’s top scorer against Tasmania, Robert Franks, echoed Bruton’s comments to remain focused and ready to take on the Wildcats.

“Be smarter, stick to the scout,” Franks said.

“We know what we’ve got to do, the season is on the line and we’ve got to go fight.”

Saturday’s game against Perth will be vital in helping the 36ers move up the ladder. Tip-off is 8:00pm on Saturday at RAC Arena.