Kai Sotto limited to 6 points as Adelaide 36ers lose back-to-back

FILE–Kai Sotto of the 36ers looks on during the round 10 NBL match between South East Melbokaiurne Phoenix and Adelaide 36ers at John Cain Arena on December 11, 2022 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Graham Denholm/Getty Images)

MANILA, Philippines — Kai Sotto hardly made his presence felt on the offensive end as the Adelaide 36ers suffered their second straight loss at the hands of Tasmania JackJumpers, 98-82, in Australia’s 2022-23 National Basketball League season on Thursday at MyState Bank Arena.

The 7-foot-3 center only had six points on 3-of-9 shooting and grabbed seven rebounds in 18 minutes and 34 seconds of playing time as a starter.

Sotto was coming off a season-high 16 points last Sunday in Adelaide’s 85-83 loss to the New Zealand Breakers.

The 20-year-old Filipino import made a dunk in the final eight-minute mark to put trim the deficit to eight, 74-66. But The JackJumpers kept the 36ers at bay with a 15-6 run capped by Jack McVeigh’s triple to put away the game with a commanding 89-72 lead with 4:12 left.

McVeigh and Milton Doyle powered Tasmania with 28 points each, combining for nine triples. The pair also had six rebounds each with the latter dishing out four assists.

The JackJumpers improved to a 13-10 record in fourth place after sinking 13-of-32 from the three-point line.

Adelaide slid to eighth place with an 11-11 card after losing two consecutive matches.

Robert Franks was the lone double-digit scorer for the 36ers with 24 points from five treys on top of three rebounds and two assists.

Sotto and his team hope to end their slump against Perth Wildcats (11-10) in another road game on Saturday.