Daniel Fotu
July 23, 2020
Jayden Bezzant
- Nationality: NZL
- Date of Birth: 9/07/96
- Place of Birth: Tauranga (New Zealand)
- Position: GRD
- Height (CM): 188
- Weight (KG): 84
- Junior Assoc: NZ - Waikato
- College: Northwest Nazarene (2016–2017)
- NBL DEBUT: 26/12/22
- AGE AT DEBUT: 26
- LAST NBL GAME: 26/12/22
- AGE AT LAST GAME: 26
- NBL History: New Zealand 2023
- Championships: 0
- None
BIO: Jayden Bezzant was born in Tauranga (New Zealand).
NBL EXPERIENCE
Jayden Bezzant made his NBL debut with the New Zealand Breakers at 26 years of age. He went scoreless in his first NBL game.
New Zealand entered its first season under Mody Maor after finishing last with a 5-23 record, rebuilding the roster around returning players Thomas Abercrombie, Robert Loe and William McDowell-White before emerging as one of the league’s leading defensive teams.
Jayden Bezzant joined the Breakers in December as an injury replacement for McDowell-White, who was sidelined after breaking his right index finger.
Bezzant (1 game) remained outside New Zealand’s regular backcourt rotation and was used only while McDowell-White was unavailable.
His first and only NBL game came against Tasmania at MyState Bank Arena on December 26, where Bezzant (0 points and 1 rebound) played 6:45 as Le’Afa (21 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists, and 2 steals), Brown Jr (16 points, 4 rebounds, and 4 assists) and Brantley (16 points) led New Zealand. Josh Magette (16 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, and 5 steals) led Tasmania to a 93-82 victory.
Bezzant did not appear again after McDowell-White returned as New Zealand finished second with an 18-10 record and lost the Championship Series to Sydney in five games.
Jayden Bezzant played in one NBL game during the 2022-23 season, scoring 0 points, 1 rebounds, and 0 assists.
NBL TOTAL STATISTICS
| SEASON | AGE | TEAM | TEAM RECORD | GP | MINS | PTS | REB | AST | OR | DR | STL | BLK | TO | PF | FGM | FGA | FG% | 3PM | 3PA | 3P% | FTM | FTA | FT% | TS% | EFG% | HS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022-23 | 26 | New Zealand | 18-10 (2) | 1 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0 | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0 | Totals | 1 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% | 0 | 0 | 0.0% | 0 | 0 | 0.0% | 0% | 0% | 0 |
NBL PER GAME STATISTICS
| SEASON | AGE | TEAM | TEAM RECORD | GP | MINS | PTS | REB | AST | OR | DR | STL | BLK | TO | PF | FGM | FGA | FG% | 3PM | 3PA | 3P% | FTM | FTA | FT% | TS% | EFG% | HS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022-23 | 26 | New Zealand | 18-10 (2) | 1 | 6.8 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0% | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0% | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0 | Total | 1 | 6.8 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0% | 0% | 0 |
CAREER HIGHS
| POINTS | REBOUNDS | ASSISTS | STEALS | BLOCKS | TURNOVERS | TRIPLE DOUBLES | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
|---|
INTERNATIONAL EXPERIENCE
- New Zealand - Franklin (2022), Tauranga (2026)
In 2022, Jayden Bezzant played in New Zealand for the Franklin Bulls and averaged 15.4 points, 3 rebounds, and 4.4 assists across 11 games.
In 2026, Bezzant signed with the Tauranga Whai in the NZNBL.
COLLEGE
Jayden Bezzant played four seasons of college basketball at Northwest Nazarene University in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) of NCAA Division II from 2016–17 through 2019–20, after originally joining the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley and redshirting in 2015–16 before transferring to NNU.
In his freshman season (2016–17) with the Nighthawks, Bezzant made 19 starts in 25 games, averaging 9.3 points, 2.4 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.4 steals per game while playing 29.0 minutes per outing, with shooting splits of .412 from the field and .394 from three.
As a sophomore in 2017–18, Bezzant started 25 of 26 games and took a step forward offensively, averaging 14.3 points, 3.1 rebounds, 2.1 assists, and 1.4 steals per game in 29.8 minutes, highlighted by his improved scoring role and consistency on both ends of the floor.
During the 2018–19 season, he moved into a reserve role while still contributing significantly, averaging 13.1 points, 2.1 rebounds and 2.1 assists over 26 games with eight starts, and on 2 February 2019 scored a season-high 30 points — with 25 coming in the second half — in a 92–89 overtime win over MSU Billings; his performance earned him All-GNAC Honorable Mention that year.
Bezzant returned for his senior year in 2019–20 after overcoming early eligibility challenges and made 18 starts in 19 games, averaging 14.0 points, 3.9 assists and 2.0 rebounds per game while converting at a .473 field-goal rate and .329 from three; he also hit a game-winning three-pointer in his season debut on January 2, 2020 against Simon Fraser.
His strong senior season saw Bezzant recognised as first-team All-GNAC, capping a career where he finished with 96 games played and 70 starts, a collegiate scoring average of 12.6 points per game, plus solid contributions across rebounding, assists and steals during his time in NCAA DII competition.
Bezzant’s collegiate tenure also included his positional adjustment from shooting guard to primary point guard in his final season as he took on increased playmaking responsibilities for the Nighthawks, demonstrating his versatility and leadership on the court.
Related
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