Preview: Adelaide vs Tasmania - Round 7, NBL24

Friday, November 10, 2023

A primetime Saturday night match-up will feature the in-form Adelaide 36ers hosting the JackJumpers.

Saturday, November 8 at 8pm AEDT | Adelaide Entertainment Centre

Watch: Live on ESPN via Kayo Sports - International viewership details
Box scores: Download the free NBL App

Adelaide has gone 2-2 since the addition of DJ Vasiljevic, with the two-time NBL champion’s scoring impact elevating the 36ers into a dangerous two-way team.

Adelaide fell victim to a desperate Perth in need of a win, with Bryce Cotton finally finding the bottom of the net, after an uncharacteristic cold streak. The 36ers return home to the Adelaide Entertainment Centre for Saturday’s clash against the feisty JackJumpers.

Tasmania is riding high after getting revenge against the Brisbane Bullets, grinding out the win in front of their home crowd. Milton Doyle and Jordan Crawford continue to form one of the best dynamic duos in the NBL, with Scott Roth also getting the best out of his collection of forwards in Jack McVeigh, Anthony Drmic and Majok Deng.

The JackJumpers have confirmed Will Magnay will suit up for his first game of the season.

Adelaide
88-99 loss to Perth
97-85 win over New Zealand
89-78 win over Perth

Tasmania
87-85 win Brisbane
87-90 loss to Brisbane
82-90 loss to Melbourne

Playerstowatch

Trey Kell III
After getting comfortable in the NBL with the Phoenix last season, Trey Kell III is filling his scoring role perfectly at the 36ers. Coming off 25 points against the Wildcats, Kell is averaging 3.5 points per game more in the same amount of minutes as last season.

The athletic wing will be a headache for Tasmania's defence, with the combination of his 193-centimetre frame and ability to score from anywhere making him a nightmare to match up on.

Kell called his teammates out following last week's defeat to Perth, and said his side's communication throughout the defeat was "poor", but refused to blame the raucous RAC Arena crowd for overpowering the noise his teammates may or may not have been making.

Kell has quickly established himself as a leader in this 36ers side, especially before they added DJ Vasiljevic to their ranks. If there's to be a positive change in that communication, then he will likely be the one to drive it.

"I think our communication was poor for whatever reason. It's hard to just pinpoint an exact reason - I don't think it was a noise issue, I just don't think we were talking to the level we needed to and it hurt us." - Trey Kell following the loss to Perth.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Never give up ?<br><br>Trey Kell with eyes in the back of his head.<br><br>Catch the final quarter live on ESPN via Kayo ? <a href="https://t.co/H3e1Ao6EEx">pic.twitter.com/H3e1Ao6EEx</a></p>— NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1720749849006452884?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 4, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Milton Doyle
Milton Doyle - the aggressor, was back in action in Round 6, and after a few uncharacteristically quiet performances the MVP candidate exploded back to his regular self for the JackJumpers in a two-point win over Brisbane.

Prior to that game, Doyle had scored a combined 19 points in a pair of defeats to Melbourne and the Bullets, and former teammate Sam McDaniel held him to just seven points in the first of back-to-back meetings between the sides.

After opening the season as a near-consensus MVP fancy, those quiet games have allowed the likes of Nathan Sobey and Alan Williams to sneak into the conversation, but Doyle sent a stark reminder of just how good he is when the chips were down in their narrow victory over Brisbane.

Following the game, he said he made a point of being more aggressive in the clash where he starred. Coincidence? Probably not. The question is, can he maintain the rage?

"My goal for this game was to be a little bit more aggressive. I watched some clips with the coaches before the game, I took ten shots in the last game and the game before that ... my goal was just to get more shots up, because if you get more shots up, more will go in." - Milton Doyle following the win over Brisbane.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Milton Doyle is heating up in this one. He's up to 24 ?‍?<br><br>Catch the final quarter live on ESPN via Kayo ? <a href="https://t.co/xBHPKfd6Ef">pic.twitter.com/xBHPKfd6Ef</a></p>— NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1720716664004546986?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 4, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Thematchup

Marcus Lee vs Isaac Humphries
The battle of the bigs will be the match-up for this clash, with Marcus Lee looking to try to find form against former Atlanta Hawk Isaac Humphries.

After becoming a sensation in NBL23 and almost pushing Melbourne United to the post-season after arriving in the middle of the campaign, Lee has struggled to maintain his impact as the terrifying lob threat and troublesome rim protector he was last year.

He’s averaging 2.7 fewer points per game and 0.8 fewer blocks per game (down from 1.6 last season), but the impending return of Will Magnay will likely provide him some much-needed backup - and competition - in his status as Scott Roth's first center on the floor.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Marcus Lee has the footwork ?<br><br>Catch the action live on ESPN via Kayo ? <a href="https://t.co/jFGLwGC1ER">pic.twitter.com/jFGLwGC1ER</a></p>— NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1712388484294742112?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 12, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Humphries will be a big challenge for Lee to defend. Ranking first in PER (player efficiency ratings) among centers, the two-way threat is a headache for opposition team when he gets going. The issue may be consistency, with a high of 26 points against the Wildcats and a low of two points against the Phoenix.

Brisbane's bigs caused Lee substantial trouble with their size. Tyrell Harrison dropped a combined 30 points and 14 rebounds against the JackJumpers in their back-to-back clashes, with the Bullets out-rebounding the JackJumpers 78-66 across two games.

So can Lee keep Humphries on his feet and draw him out of the paint? Or will Humphries overpower the JackJumpers to claim inside dominance?

Gettyimages 1774298693
Isaac Humphries.