ALTHOUGH only one of the teams in tonight’s National Basketball League (NBL) clash between the Tasmania JackJumpers and the Brisbane Bullets can make the postseason, the latter will be looking to spoil the fun.

The JackJumpers are clinging on to sixth spot, and following last night’s result, will certainly need to keep winning if they are to get the job done. They are in a three-horse race with the New Zealand Breakers and the Illawarra Hawks for the final spot in the play-in, and the other teams will be eager to keep themselves alive.

Looking to play party-pooper are the Bullets, who are travelling south to continue to play for pride to close out their campaign, and Brisbane will be relishing the opportunity to cause some chaos in the final weeks of the fixture.

Tasmania JackJumpers vs. Brisbane Bullets

MyState Bank Arena
Friday, February 6 @ 7:30pm

The JackJumpers looked in dire straits midway through last weekend when they were suffering consecutive losses courtesy of some season-ending injuries to some of their best players. When the likes of Will Magnay and Bryce Hamilton were lost for the remainder of their campaign, it looked as if Tasmania was going to bow out of the finals race despite occupying sixth spot.

However, the JackJumpers turned it around in a must-win clash against the Breakers last Sunday, claiming a tense three-point win at home to stay alive and most importantly, show that they can still win despite missing their two best players.

Someone needed to step up for Tasmania, and import David Johnson answered the call with his best performance in the NBL, dropping 33 points and seven three-pointers. He showed that he can be a viable number-one option, so look for his offensive presence against Brisbane.

The Bullets’ quest for finals ended long ago in what has been a tumultuous campaign so far. From injuries to suspensions to coaching changes, Brisbane has hardly been able to settle throughout the 2025/26 NBL season, but will still be eager to finish the year strong under interim coach Darryl McDonald, who took the reigns mid-season.

Tonight presents quite the opportunity for the Bullets to still play a role in the race for the finals and upset the JackJumpers down in Tasmania. If Brisbane can repeat its feats from earlier in the season and win down in Tassie, it will give the top six a massive shake up and cause some serious chaos ahead of the final weeks of the season.

Despite it being a tough campaign overall, big man Jacob Holt has consistently been competing at a high level in every match, and can hold his head high for his performances of late. As mentioned above, Tasmania is missing Magnay, so the center has the perfect opportunity to stamp his authority inside and give his team the best chance of a win.