Hannahs Fires When it Matters as 36ers Open Account

Dusty Hannahs scored his only two buckets of the second half when they mattered most in a clutch performance to ensure the Adelaide 36ers held on in a thrilling finish to beat the Tasmania JackJumpers 83-80 on Thursday night.

The Sixers headed back to Tasmania where they had won all five games during the NBL Blitz searching for their first win of #NBL22 after losing to Perth and Illawarra in the opening round, and they did appear to have the measure of JackJumpers most of the night at MyState Bank Arena.

Adelaide led by as much as 14 points during the first half and were still up 13 with 7:30 left in the game when Daniel Johnson hit a three ball, but the JackJumpers had never lost in the NBL and weren’t going to go down without a fight.

In the end, it was Josh Adams who got going after a horror first 35 minutes of the game largely when guarded by Todd Withers. But when Withers fouled out, Adams shook off missing his first seven field goals to drain three triples for 11 points in three minutes.

However, it would be Adelaide's shooting import Dusty Hannahs that sealed the win. He had 10 points in the first half on the back of six free-throws, but then after a scoreless second half he threw up a desperation three to beat the shot clock with just over a minute left.

That connected for his first three in the NBL and then on the next play down the floor he scored again just to beat the shot clock. Tasmania's Josh Magette missed two chances to force overtime and Adelaide opened their account under CJ Bruton with the three-point win.

Hannahs finished with a game-high 15 points and four assists for Adelaide on shooting just six field goals on which he made four.

Hannahs was just happy to contribute to the win at the end of the day after a tough couple of outings to start his NBL career.

"I had a tough first two games and I felt like I let my teammates down, and the staff and everybody," Hannahs said.

"Today was just about getting back on track and the team getting a win. I'm glad I was able to get that three in a time when we needed it."

Daniel Johnson finished with 14 points while Mojave King added 10 points and three assists, Mitch McCarron nine points and six rebounds, Todd Withers nine points and three boards, and Cam Bairstow nine points and five rebounds.

JackJumpers captain Clint Steindl top-scored with 22 points including going 4/9 from deep while Jack McVeigh contributed 10 points and six rebounds against his former club.

Import guard duo Josh Magette (11 points, eight assists) and Josh Adams (15 points, five rebounds, three steals) didn’t have the shooting nights they hoped going for a combined 7/24 from the field and 4/14 from deep.

Tasmania coach Scott Roth just felt his team didn’t come out with the energy and intensity they needed from the outset.

"I thought Adelaide played very well and we started off kind of slow with not a lot of energy, and that kind of built through the first half," Roth said.

"Eventually we got some things going in the second half but at the end of the day our margin of error's not very big and we have to have the energy and intensity to play all the time. This is a good learning lesson for us. 

"I don’t like to learn that way, but the league is very competitive with a lot of very good players, and you need to keep your edge. There are some positive things out there but a couple of mental lapses and breakdowns too."

The JackJumpers hit the game's first five points including a three from Jack McVeigh against his old team, but the 36ers then got rolling with the next nine points.

Mojave King then came on and hit two quick threes, Manny Malou hit another on debut for Adelaide and the Sixers were up 25-22 by quarter-time.

The 36ers then held the JackJumpers scoreless for more than three minutes of the second quarter and without a field goal for more than five minutes. In that time, Mitch McCarron hit a three, as did Todd Withers and they went on a 13-2 run to lead by 14.

It was captain Clint Steindl that kept the JJ's in touch hitting three triples in the first half on his way to 15 points, but the rest of the team went 1/14 from beyond the arc. Adelaide overcame 10 turnovers to shoot 6/13 from deep and lead 42-34 at the main break.

Josh Magette tried to shoot the JackJumpers back into the game to start the third quarter, and while the 36ers continued to cough up too many turnovers, Tasmania just couldn’t make them pay.

Threes to Malou and King helped Adelaide to close the third term leading 66-56 chasing their first win of NBL22.

Johnson hit a three for the Sixers early in the fourth to stretch the lead to 13 with 7:30 left, but the JackJumpers just wouldn’t go away.

In the end, the game turned when Withers fouled out for Adelaide. He was doing a tremendous job defensively on Josh Adams. He had missed his first seven field goals, but then got on a roll once Withers was out of his pocket.

He hit eight quick points to make it a one-point ball game before Hannahs stepped up to beat the shot clock with his first three-pointer in the NBL. Adams immediately responded to keep it a one-point ball game but it was Hannahs again beating the shot clock this time with a floater.

The JackJumpers did get a stop and had one last chance to force overtime and Magette had two deep three-point attempts, but they were a bit far out and Adelaide held on to win by three.

Both teams back up to play again in Round 2 with the JackJumpers playing their first ever road game against the Cairns Taipans on Saturday while the 36ers are back home to host the New Zealand Breakers on Sunday.

HUNGRY JACK'S NBL ROUND 2

TASMANIA JACKJUMPERS 80 (Steindl 22, Adams 15, Magette 11)

ADELAIDE 36ERS 83 (Hannahs 15, Johnson 14, King 10)

BOX SCORE