Preview: Tasmania vs Illawarra - Seeding Qualifier, NBL24

Sunday, February 25, 2024

Who can take advantage of the Seeding Qualifier standing and lock in their Playoff place against Perth?

Wednesday, February 28 at 5:30pm AEDT | MyState Bank Arena

Watch: Live on ESPN via Kayo | Sky Sport in NZ - International viewership details
Box scores: Download the free NBL App

Tasmania
Scott Roth has said his side’s focus is primarily on how the JackJumpers can execute their own game plan, rather than anything the Hawks might do.

Jack McVeigh and Sean Macdonald were among the award winners at the NBL’s MVP awards night. McVeigh was in the All-NBL Second Team, while Macdonald was named the competition’s Most Improved Player.

Damon Lowery has labelled the home JackJumpers crowd as “worth 12 points”, and stated on NBL Now that he believes the fans could be a difference-maker in this clash. The comments came after Roth said this season is so tight that home court advantage will likely not be decisive.

Illawarra
Justin Tatum signed a three-year extension with the Hawks that was announced during the club’s MVP celebrations. The interim coach had previously said while nothing was decided with the Hawks, that he was open to offers from other clubs.

Sam Froling was named the NBL’s second ever Next Generation Award winner, while Gary Clark was a member of the All-NBL First Team. Clark has also stated he’s ready to sign on with Illawarra once a contract can be sorted out between the club and his management.

Lachlan Olbrich has said he is targeting the 2025 NBA Draft following a successful rookie campaign with Illawarra. The young center found himself in some mock drafts following his strong NBL Blitz showing.

Damon Lowery has said he is “hoping to pass the torch” on to a new champion Illawarra side. Lowery played in the club’s first and only title in 2001, and the Hawks have the longest active title drought of any side to have won at least one championship in the competition.

Tasmania
86-72 win over Perth
94-67 win over South East Melbourne
109-86 win over Adelaide

Illawarra
87-92 loss to Melbourne
108-92 win over Perth
106-95 win over Sydney

Jack McVeigh
There’s been something of a Jack McVeigh love-in happening across the NBL over the past few weeks. Coaches, teammates, opposition and media have all been waxing lyrical about the improvement of the JackJumpers forward, and the praise has been wholly justified across this campaign.

McVeigh earned his first All-NBL nomination for his performances this season and was named to the Second Team alongside teammate Milton Doyle, and that accolade is the latest tick in a box of what has been a meteoric rise over the past 18 months.

Scott Roth hailed his team’s spiritual leader as “quirky” during the NBL Finals Launch last week, but for however quirky and unique he is off the court, he’s an absolute killer on it.

Roth’s revelation that McVeigh was the player who won the club’s pre-season yo-yo test – which is a running drill generally dominated by guards – came as no surprise seeing as McVeigh got to where he is with hard work and graft.

His season averages of 16.4 points and 5.3 rebounds per game are strong, but might not leap off the page – however he’s such an efficient player and such a heart on his sleeve barometer for this team that his contributions go far beyond basic basketball metrics.

If Tasmania finds itself on the back foot against the Hawks, it will likely be McVeigh who gets them going. If it finds itself establishing a comfortable lead, it will likely be McVeigh who keeps his team on task to put itself in the position to strike the killer blow.

Roth has continued to assert that McVeigh is like the ‘Jesse Wagstaff of Tasmania’ for his contributions to the club, and while that comparison can never be made lightly, it’s one that fits.

Now all that’s missing is the titles.

“With Jack it’s been a constant improvement, he’s very much about improving, he’s very much about his self-development on and off the floor ... he’s growing in the right way, and now it’s a matter of if he can get some trophies under his belt, but he’s a fantastic person, a lifelong JackJumper in my opinion and we’re excited about his growth.” – Scott Roth at the NBL24 Finals Launch.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Congratulations to Jack McVeigh and Milton Doyle, selected in the All-NBL Second Team! <br><br>Reward for another outstanding season for both players ???? <a href="https://t.co/K5dcI0AfvZ">pic.twitter.com/K5dcI0AfvZ</a></p>— Tasmania JackJumpers ? (@JackJumpers) <a href="https://twitter.com/JackJumpers/status/1759526511735132500?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 19, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Gary Clark
What a revelation Gary Clark has been in the second half of NBL24. Rarely does an import throw themselves so wholeheartedly into a team and its community, especially after only initially signing on a one-year deal.

Clark has established himself as one of the best players in the NBL during the Hawks’ incredible run under Justin Tatum, and that record was rightly acknowledged by his inclusion in the All-NBL First Team.

The star forward isn’t just a fan favourite on the floor though. He’s consistently discussed how he loves spending time at a community kitchen in the region, and mentioned at the club’s MVP night that seeing someone there wearing his jersey made him emotional.

There’s an obvious connection between Clark and the Wollongong community, and that’s what has made this love affair between player and club so much stronger. Of course, once again, it helps that the former Houston Rocket has established himself as a bona fide superstar of the league.

In a team that has a number of match-winners it can throw the ball to when the game is on the line, Clark perhaps feels like the safest option. While Tyler Harvey’s ability to win a game on the final possession is all but unrivalled in the competition, and Sam Froling’s ability to mop up on the interior and create second chance efforts is likely undervalued, the ball seems to go to Clark when something needs to happen.

If there’s nothing to split these two teams in the final quarter, Gary Clark will likely be option one for the Hawks, and if Illawarra has already established a strong lead, you can be sure he'll have his fingerprints all over it.

Either way, Clark’s influence and importance to the Hawks perhaps supersedes that of any other player in the NBL.

"I love this place, I love Illawarra, I love Wollongong. I spend a lot of time in the community kitchen at the Lighthouse (church) and I was able to have some of my good friends, some of the less fortunate, come to one of our last home games ... it was so emotional, coming out of the game at the end and just going up and spending time with them. Last week one of the ladies had my jersey on at the kitchen and it was emotional because my ties run deeper than just the basketball.” – Gary Clark via the Illawarra Mercury.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Big time numbers in a big time win ?<br><br>Gary Clark put up a huge double-double in the <a href="https://twitter.com/illawarrahawks?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@illawarrahawks</a> Finals-clinching win ?<br><br>Check out his best plays ?? <a href="https://t.co/31CwzUwVA4">pic.twitter.com/31CwzUwVA4</a></p>— NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1758329358169911667?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 16, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Will Magnay vs Sam Froling
Two premier local bigs going head-to-head in the paint is one of the greatest sights to see in the NBL. There’s just something different about a paint battle between two Boomers calibre players who are striving for international recognition – and perhaps an opportunity with an NBA side come Summer League or training contract time.

Will Magnay’s status in Derek Rucker’s top 15 is one player whose position has not been disputed. The Best Sixth Man nominee has re-established himself as one of the premier rim protectors in the NBL, and although he’s coming off the bench in favour of Marcus Lee – he’s the main man in the paint.

Sam Froling may not have been included on Rucker’s list, but the newly crowned Next Generation Award winner has been imperious in the paint under Justin Tatum. While Froling has shown the ability to step out and shoot – and that’s still a weapon defences need to be mindful of – he’s taken his talents further into the paint, and he’s continuing to establish himself as one of the emerging premier post and offensive rebound threats in the NBL.

Magnay and Froling both play different offensive roles within their respective team’s setups. Magnay is a more traditional high screen and roll or post-up presence, while Froling tends to be more involved in a high percentage of the Hawks offensive sets and has a tendency to move with the ball and complete dribble-handoffs to open up play for his guard before rolling to the basket to post up or chase a rebound.

However when times are tough they both fall back on the similar skillset that is the bread and butter of the center position, and has been so for decades. Rebounding, physicality and back to the basket play.

Magnay has played twice against the Hawks this season and averaged 13 points, seven rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game.

Froling, on the other hand, has put the JackJumpers to the sword in their three meetings with 17.7 points, 9.7 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game.

In a game filled with decisive battles, sometimes looking for the key is as simple as looking for who can allow their side to wrest control of the contest. Given a large part of that comes down to rebounding, it’s impossible to look further than this battle of the local bigs.

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Sam Froling and Will Magnay.

Illawarra has lost four of its last five Finals games. Illawarra’s only Finals win in that period came in a Game 1 of its NBL21 series against Perth, where current Hawk Todd Blanchfield had 24 points for the Wildcats in a two-point loss.