DESPITE being undermanned in a crucial National Basketball League (NBL) clash on Sunday afternoon, Tasmania JackJumpers were able to pull out a win over the New Zealand Breakers on the back of a scoring explosion from David Johnson.

The two teams are currently vying for the same spot on the ladder, with the JackJumpers occupying sixth position and the Breakers hot on their tail. Whichever side could get the job done would be sitting in the play-in, although both teams were shorthanded. The Breakers lost Sam Mennenga for up to eight weeks to a wrist injury, while the JackJumpers saw Bryce Hamilton, Will Magnay and Ben Ayre go down to season-ending injuries in the span of a couple of weeks.

At MyState Bank Arena, the JackJumpers were in front of most of the match, and built a lead as big as 13 points in the third quarter and looked to be in the box seat. However, the Breakers fought hard in their biggest clash of the season, erasing the deficit and hitting the lead in the final frame on the back of some scoring power from Izaiah Brockington, before Johnson delivered the winning play for Tassie, dropping a late triple to win the game for the home side, who got the job done by two points.

It was undoubtedly Johnson’s best performance in a JackJumpers uniform, with the import wing stepping up in the absence of star teammates to lead Tasmania to a win that may be integral in its postseason hopes.

Tasmania JackJumpers (91) def. New Zealand Breakers (89)

David Johnson – 33 points, four rebounds, two assists, one steal, one block

Hamilton has been the JackJumpers’ leading scorer throughout the season, meaning someone needed to step up for Tasmania in a must-win encounter on Sunday afternoon. Johnson was the player to answer the call, dominating over the first three quarters and then stepping up for the game-winning shot.

The forward was electric in the first half, completely dominating proceedings prior to the main break and proving the best scoring option for Tassie in the first 20 minutes. At half time, he already had 22 points to his name and was comfortably contributing as the number one scoring option for the JackJumpers, a role he relinquished when Hamilton hit form early in the season.

Willing to pull the trigger from behind the arc as well as take his opponent off the dribble, he was causing plenty of headaches for the Breakers, who could not keep the ball out of his hands. When he did not have the ball, he was able to slip away from his defender and find space from behind the arc, where he found plenty of success.

Already boasting a 30-piece to his name, Johnson stepped up for the most important play of the game in the dying seconds. The Breakers had taken the lead, and Tasmania had the ball with 30 seconds on the clock, looking to win the game. Point guard Tyger Campbell had the ball and drove towards the free throw line. As the defence collapsed, Johnson slid out to the perimeter, caught the dish-out pass and nailed the game-winning triple.

The import finished the game with 33 points, which is the most he has produced in a single game during his NBL career, and ended the match shooting 10/17 from the field and an impressive 7/11 from behind the arc.

Tasmania’s chances of making the play-in copped a massive blow with its growing injury list, but a performance of this calibre from Johnson gives the JackJumpers some hope heading into a do-or-die patch of games to close out the season.