Aussie Jock Landale breaks 33-year-old NBA record in career-best performance

Aussie Jock Landale put himself in elite company with a career-best performance in the NBA that broke a 33-year-old record.

Jock Landale set broke a 33-year-old record in his career-best performance for the Spurs.

Jock Landale continues to make a big impression in the NBA as he broke a 33-year-old San Antonio Spurs franchise record on Sunday (AEDT).

Extended court time has been hard to come by for Landale in his first season in the NBA. But with first-choice Spurs big man Jakob Poetl out with injury, the Australian grabbed the chance for more minutes with both hands in San Antonio’s clash with the Indiana Pacers.

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Landale was a dominant force in the paint and finished with a career-high 26 points (12 from 15 attempts) on sensational 80 per cent shooting.

He became the first Spurs rookie to score 25 or more points while shooting over 80 per cent from the floor in a game since David Robinson in 1989.

That puts Landale in some elite company. Robinson was no slouch and went on to win two NBA championships with San Antonio in 1999 and 2003.

Landale topscored for the Spurs and also had seven rebounds and two assists as he hustled hard on the offensive boards.

Jock Landale, forever playing his butt off.pic.twitter.com/L5uX66bp2Y

— Tom Petrini (@RealTomPetrini) March 13, 2022

He also became just the 10th Australian to score 25 or more points in an NBA game, joining a list featuring Joe Ingles, Aron Baynes, (Australian-born) Kyrie Irving, Chris Anstey, Dante Exum, Patty Mills, Andrew Bogut, Ben Simmons and Josh Giddey.

Jock Landale has his own slice of NBA history. (Photo by Megan Briggs/Getty Images)

He was on fire for the Spurs against the Pacers.

Unfortunately the 26-year-old’s heroics weren’t enough to get the Spurs over the line as the Pacers secured a 119-108 win.

Indiana’s Tyrese Haliburton scored 19 points and had 10 assists while Duane Washington added 19 off the bench for the Pacers.

Speaking after his record-breaking effort, Landale told reporters: “I’m cooked.”

He was philosophical when asked about his lack of game time in his debut NBA season.

“Part of it is just that there are guys ahead of me that deserve to be on the court more,” Landale said.

“They’re great defensively, and that’s definitely an area I need to keep getting better in.”

The Aussie, who won bronze with the Boomers at last year’s Tokyo Olympics, said he would love to stay with San Antonio for the rest of his NBA career.

Originally published as Aussie Jock Landale breaks 33-year-old NBA record in career-best performance