IN THE best performance he has produced since joining the National Basketball League (NBL) as a Next Star, Malique Lewis played a crucial role as the SEM Phoenix defeated the Tasmania JackJumpers last night.

The JackJumpers hosted the Phoenix at the Silverdome in Launceston on Thursday night, with the home side looking to put their losing streak at the venue to bed. However, South East Melbourne would prove a formidable challenge, slipping under the radar in terms of championship contenders and sitting right among the heavy hitters on the ladder.

It was a surprisingly high-scoring affair given the JackJumpers’ offensive struggles during the 2025/26 season so far, with a combined 120 points scored in the first half. In a thrilling contest, the Phoenix managed to come away with a one-point win despite Bryce Hamilton‘s 36-point offensive explosion at the Silverdome.

Undoubtedly, the Phoenix would not have been in a winning position if not for the production of Lewis, who took a big step forward in his development with a breakout showing that demonstrated the improvement in his scoring power since joining the competition.

Tasmania JackJumpers (102) def. by South East Melbourne Phoenix (103)

Malique Lewis – 23 points, four rebounds, four assists, one steal

Lewis was magnificent against the JackJumpers, posting a career-high total in the points column, with the Trinidadian exploding out of the blocks and setting the tone for the Phoenix in what was a vital showing in the context of the game.

He got himself going with a nice driving layup and one-handed finish at the rack, before nailing another inside basket a minute later, this time in transition after a John Brown III steal to help the Phoenix get rolling offensively in enemy territory in what was an ominous sign of things to come for the youngster.

One of the biggest areas of improvement coming into this year was his long-range shooting, but he nailed back to back three-pointers in the first quarter against the JackJumpers to show how far he had come in terms of his impact from behind the arc.

The game was being played at quite a high tempo, which meant the zippy ball movement often saw Lewis left open behind the arc, and he made no mistake in the opening term. He capped off a brilliant start to the match with a crafty euro step through traffic to finish with 12 points in less than eight minutes of court time.

As expected, Lewis started the second quarter on the court, and found teammate Nathan Sobey open on the perimeter with a nice space-creating pass. The Next Star picked up exactly where he left off in the first frame, splashing home his third triple in what was proving to be his best performance in the NBL. Another three-point bomb shortly followed and he had 18 points to his name by the time the buzzer sounded to mark half time.

His fifth triple came shortly after half time, and although it was his final make of the game, he had already put the Phoenix in a strong position, and forced the JackJumpers’ defence to respect him around the perimeter. The young gun remained on the floor for crunch time, and played a vital role as South East Melbourne held on for a tense one-point win.

Lewis finished the match with 21 points – 18 of which came in a blistering first half performance – on 9/11 shooting from the field and 5/6 shooting from behind the arc in an extremely efficient scoring showing to go with his four rebounds and four assists. It was unmistakably an eye-catching performance and could be crucial to his NBA hopes moving forward.