Peaking at the Right Time: Jaguars’ Late-Season Form Sets Playoff Tone
By A.A JohnsonSr. Writer | August 11, 2025 11:30 EAT

Upon entering the NBL bubble in mid-July, Jaguars head coach Sudi Ulanga laid out one short-term goal for his team: to be playing its better basketball than last season, that meant improving on every aspect of their games and goals. “We should get better every game we play”

And With the way things are trending, the JT Jaguars could reach that goal as they enter a very crucial stage: the playoffs.

After starting 1-2 inside the bubble, the Jaguars turned a corner to discover their best rhythm of the season. They had lost 3 consecutive games in July and had to stage a comeback, after falling to Rezlife, they had 4 games left to define who they were, and that’s when the real test started.

It began in July when the Black Jaguars thrashed the City Oilers 65-60, which was the second time in a row. The J’s then ran into some trouble against the Kampala Rockets, but their composure never wavered as they staged a last-second play in regulation that eventually resulted in a classic 55-56 finish after George William shattered their dreams.

Next were the Spartans, a team that had won all its games in Round 2, running confidently on an 8-0 unbeaten run, but they were shocked by the cunning Jaguars with an 84-62 blowout win.

Finally, just last weekend, the Jaguars returned to their dominant ways by mauling a desperate KIU team 70-54 in the best 4th quarter comeback I have ever seen, to conclude the regular season.

Now, with the playoffs standing in their way, the Black Jaguars can confidently say that they are prepared for postseason basketball.

“I think we’re ready,” Kasasa said following Saturday night’s win. “Yes, it’s true we won them in the regular season, but the playoffs are a different thing, man! We need to come hungry for that win, and just like you know, it can all come to an end in just one weekend, so Game One will be the most important game. We need to play differently, with a bigger appetite to win against those guys. They are good, they are the nine-time defending champions and that is big, but we need to come prepared to fight to the end,” said Kasasa.

Speaking to Kevin Moru, “Obviously I think we just continue to get better each and every game, and that’s what you want this time of the year – to continue to get better at the right time of the season.”

Where the Jaguars have improved most is in the ability to finish 4th quarters strong with composure. I think this was a problem last year only because they were mostly new to the NBL, and whenever they would reach 4th quarters, they would crumble under pressure. But this has changed. Also, transition plays, ball movement, game execution, and the ability to read the game are really high now.

The Jaguars’ defense has also done a solid job over the last few outings. Against Sommet, the J’s held them to their worst shooting half of the season, and then last Saturday they held the Titans to only a bucket in the entire quarter.

“We’re just going to try to keep playing as well as we can and try to be the best that we can be,” Assistant Coach Cuthbert said in regard to the positive trends he’s witnessed on both ends. “Hopefully we can just keep getting better. The way the ball has been moving has been good and guys are covering for one another, but we know that we have less than a month before we open a playoff series, so we better be getting good.”