'No one can score': Kings add to Tassie's Launceston hoodoo

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Two things continue to get worse for the Tasmania JackJumpers despite sitting in second spot on the NBL ladder; injuries and their record at the Silverdome in Launceston.

Tasmania's record in Launceston fell to 2-9 after a 71-68 loss to the Sydney Kings in a top-two battle with leading Sixth Man of the Year candidate David Johnson ($232,900) going down with a calf injury and back-up big man Ben Gold ($69,000) struggling with a foot injury.

Even with so many obstacles, JackJumpers' head coach Scott Roth's men went within two minutes of beating the defending champions, but back-to-back threes from Makuach Maluach ($134,500) took the lead away from the home side and gave the visiting Kings all the momentum to steal a three-point victory and go clear at the top of the NBL27 ladder.

"(It was) two teams battling, it was a toe-to-toe kind of thing and obviously those two three-balls and offensive rebounds at the very end were obviously enough to get the separation (for Sydney)," Roth said in the post-game press conference.

"It was just a slugfest, back and forth, we were down some players here and it was really good effort by the guys that tried to stay out there as long as they could.

"For whatever reason in this building, I don't think anyone can score every now and then, so it doesn't really matter (about how well we executed). I don't know if it was actually the defence or the building, but a 68-71 game is very unusual, especially in the last two or three years with the three-ball and everyone shooting it. It was just a hell of a battle."

Already without star import Bryce Hamilton ($293,100), Ben Ayre ($117,700) and more, Roth will be forced to make further adjustments to his rotation after injuries to Johnson and Gold.

"(David's) got a calf injury, which I'm sure is going to be quite a while, and Ben Gold's down too also, he's been dealing with a foot problem for the last 10 days. So I would expect not to see him for quite a while also," he said.

"We'll have some developmental players playing, and that's what it is. It's sport."

Despite losing nine of 11 games in Launceston, Roth didn't believe there was any hoodoo at the building.

"To be honest with you, I mean, the only thing I can tell you is we haven't been good enough to win here. That's ultimately what it is at the end of the day," he said.

"All the teams travel throughout Australia and playing in Bendigo and wherever for the Blitz, and then in different gyms, and you're making adjustments constantly as a player, and it'd be no different than coming into this building.

"We just haven't played well enough. We've had a few games that have been close like this that we haven't been across the line, and then we've had other ones where it's just a horrible outing on the offensive side in particular. We just haven't played well enough to win."

Import sharpshooter Dakota Mathias ($145,200) was impressive for the JackJumpers with 20 points while connecting on 4-from-9 from the three-point line.

MVP candidate Kendric Davis ($436,000) led the way for the Kings with 20 points and nine assists as Sydney closed out four games in nine days on the road with a 3-1 record - the only loss coming against Melbourne United.

"Well, it's where we got really good as an organisation last year, the first year, an introduction of some new players and we started and we went on a 12-game win streak in the regular season doing what we did tonight - 24 down in Cairns, come back and win - just the next play and kept fighting," Kings coach Brian Goorjian said in his post-game press conference.

"(This year) we've got a bunch of new young players in on this and that culture on this trip started. We've done some good things, but that side's been waning, and we took a big step there.

"Ours was four games in eight days and we talked about it when we got together this year, that the first thing is your team and then the second thing is the schedule. So we addressed the schedule not talking 'this is going to be part of our journey and this is going to make us or break us'.

"Tonight, stayed in it, were right there, and then it looked like they were going to, seven up is like 20 up in a game like tonight, so to hang in there and win this one was huge."

The Kings don't play for another nine days when they host the South East Melbourne Phoenix at home while the JackJumpers take on the Phoenix in Melbourne on Sunday.

Watch

NBL27

Tasmania JackJumpers vs Sydney Kings | Round 7 Highlights

Watch the highlights as the Tasmania JackJumpers take on the Sydney Kings in Round 7 of NBL27 on October 30, 2026.

What you need to know

• The Sydney Kings beat the Tasmania JackJumpers 71-68 at the Silverdome in Launceston in Round 7 of NBL27, moving to 7-3 and going clear on top of the ladder. Tasmania are 6-3.
• The first quarter finished 19-19. Sydney won the second 18-12 to lead 37-31 at half-time, Tasmania won the third 24-13 to lead 55-50, and Sydney won the fourth 21-13.
• Kendric Davis ($436,000) top-scored with 20 points and nine assists on 7-from-26, and Dakota Mathias ($145,200) led Tasmania with 20 on 5-from-13, including 4-from-9 from three.
• The game turned in the last 3:43. Tasmania led 66-59 and Sydney finished on a 12-2 run, going ahead for good on a three from Makuach Maluach ($134,500) with 1:22 left, after three offensive rebounds on that possession.
• Tasmania made more threes, nine to five, but went 17-from-29 at the line to Sydney's 14-from-16. Those 12 missed free throws came in a three-point game, and Sydney won the fourth-quarter rebounds 19-8.

Milestones

• Sydney's 71 is the lowest winning score of NBL27, and the combined 139 points is the lowest total in any of the 47 NBL27 games played so far. The previous lows were 83 and 147.
• Tasmania's 21 field goals are the fewest by any team in an NBL27 game, and their 68 points are their lowest of the season and the second-lowest by any team, behind South East Melbourne's 61 against Melbourne United on September 24.
• Kendric Davis moved to 1,962 career NBL points, 38 short of 2,000. His 19 missed shots are the most by any player in an NBL27 game.
• Will Magnay ($269,300) had 14 rebounds, his NBL27 high, and moved to 926 career NBL rebounds, 74 short of 1,000.
• Dakota Mathias scored 20, his NBL27 high, one more than his 19 against Brisbane on October 3.
• Tyler Robertson ($106,800) followed his 11 against Perth with 10, his first back-to-back double-figure games of NBL27. His 21 points in those two games are one more than he scored in his first seven games of the season combined.
• Jason Spurgin ($69,000) had three steals, his NBL27 high.

Sydney Kings

• Kendric Davis ($436,000) top-scored with 20 points, nine assists and three steals on 7-from-26, going 0-from-7 from three and 6-from-6 at the line.
• Xavier Cooks ($308,000) added 15 points and six rebounds, five of them offensive, on 6-from-8, and assisted the go-ahead three.
• Tyler Robertson ($106,800) scored 10 off the bench on 3-from-4, and his two free throws with four seconds left made it 71-68.
• Makuach Maluach ($134,500) had eight points and six rebounds off the bench, and both of his made threes came inside the last 1:55.
• Torrey Craig ($290,400) had eight points and seven rebounds, four offensive, on 3-from-13, including 2-from-8 from three.
• Jason Spurgin ($69,000) had four points and three steals off the bench with no turnovers in 16 minutes, and his plus-10 led the Kings.
• Andrew Carr ($277,000) had two points, six rebounds and two blocks in 18 minutes.
• Sydney shot 26-from-73 from the field, 5-from-26 from three and 14-from-16 at the line, with 47 rebounds, 13 assists and seven turnovers.

Tasmania JackJumpers

• Dakota Mathias ($145,200) top-scored with 20 points on 5-from-13, including 4-from-9 from three and 6-from-6 at the line, with no turnovers in 38 minutes.
• Taran Armstrong ($304,700) had 13 points and six rebounds on 4-from-18, and went 3-from-8 at the line, missing two with two seconds left.
• Josh Bannan ($317,500) had 11 points, 11 rebounds and five assists on 4-from-7, and fouled out with a minute left.
• Will Magnay ($269,300) had nine points and a game-high 14 rebounds, going 5-from-10 at the line, with four turnovers.
• Nick Marshall ($203,400) had nine points and five rebounds on 3-from-11, including 1-from-5 from three.
• David Johnson ($232,900) had four points on 2-from-3 in eight minutes, with Scott Roth saying afterwards he has a calf injury.
• Kody Stattmann ($116,800) had two points, a tip-in with five seconds left that made it 69-68, plus a steal in nine minutes.
• Tasmania shot 21-from-66 from the field, 9-from-30 from three and 17-from-29 at the line, with 49 rebounds, 15 assists and 13 turnovers.