Doolittle does enough for 'Cats home win

Tasmania JackJumpers big men Majok Deng and Josh Bannan combined for 55 points and 20 rebounds without Will Magnay, but Kristian Doolittle's 30 points with five triples led the Perth Wildcats to the 101-95 win at RAC Arena.

After the JackJumpers got off to a 13-4 start sparked by Bannan, the Wildcats' offence clicked into gear both with their aggressiveness to get to the foul line and with some hot shooting.

Perth were leading 32-28 by quarter-time largely thanks to 10 free-throw attempts to zero for Tasmania with both teams flowing offensively combining to shoot over 60 per cent from the field and to make 12 three-pointers.

The Wildcats ended up taking the game's first 15 free throws too with the JackJumpers not getting to the stripe until 15 minutes into the game, and by half-time the disparity was 19 to three.

Combine that with the 61 per cent shoot for the half from the Wildcats and the home team was leading 57-52 at the break with Doolittle having 19 points with the JackJumpers getting 30 combined from Deng and Bannan.

The JackJumpers kept fighting in the second half but the Wildcats did enough for the third straight win to improve to 8-5 with Doolittle finishing with 30 points, six assists and four rebounds on 5/7 three-point shooting.

Jo Lual-Acuil Jr had 19 points and eight rebounds before fouling out and picking up a pair of technicals for venting his frustrations with David Duke Jr adding 19 points and four assists along with a tremendous defensive job on Bryce Hamilton.

The JackJumpers star had just 13 points and five assists on seven shot attempts for the night, but it was their two big men in the absence of Magnay who kept the visitors in the contest.

Bannan ended up with 29 points, nine rebounds and two assists on 12/20 shooting while Deng had 26 points, 11 rebounds and four steals.

Bannan was unstoppable early, helping the JackJumpers to a 13-4 headstart, before Perth hit back, piloted by Doolittle.

The versatile power forward poured in 13 points for the term, including three triples, sparking an 11-2 run to give the Wildcats a 32-28 quarter-time lead, which they never relinquished.

The perimeter shooting of both sides was a feature in the opening period, Perth going 6/9 and Tasmania 6/10.

The momentum swung throughout the second stanza but the JackJumpers, led by Bannan and Deng, couldn't capture the lead back and it was the Wildcats up 57-52 at the half.

Tasmania went cold in the third, while Duke Jr lit it up for Perth at the other end.

The Wildcats' buffer ballooned to 16 points before the JackJumpers scored the last six points of the term to slash the gap to 81-71 at three quarter-time.

Perth threatened to derail late, copping back-to-back technicals against Lual-Acuil Jr - his disqualifying fifth foul - and the bench with 2:59 remaining, on top of a regulation foul.

Deng drained all four free throws, but the JackJumpers, though spirited, were unable to significantly close the margin as the clock continued to tick down.

Both teams back up to play again on Sunday ahead of the FIBA break with the JackJumpers first up to host the fresh and in-form Sydney Kings while the Wildcats take on the league-leading Melbourne United for the first time in NBL26.

HUNGRY JACK'S NBL SEASON 2025/26

PERTH WILDCATS 101 (Doolittle 30, Duke Jr 19, Lual-Acuil Jr 19)

TASMANIA JACKJUMPERS 95 (Bannan 29, Deng 26, Hamilton 13)

BOX SCORE