Melbourne United secure home-court advantage after thrilling overtime win over Perth Wildcats
Melbourne United roared home to secure a thrilling, overtime victory in their final NBL game of the regular season. But it took a bake from the coach to spur the reigning champion.
A pointed sideline exchange between Melbourne United coach Dean Vickerman and captain Chris Goulding inspired the reigning champions’ pulsating comeback win over Perth Wildcats.
United, who trailed by 11 points early in the last quarter, dominated the last three minutes of time in regulation and the five-minute over-time period, scoring quickly and in bunches to reel in the under-manned and flat-footed Wildcats at Melbourne Arena.
Vickerman laid down the law during the tense comeback, asking questions of his leaders, including Goulding, Josh Boone and Mitch McCarron.
Boone and McCarron got going in the second half after being held scoreless to the main break.
“I didn’t think our leaders had been as good as they needed to be,” Vickerman said.
“At times, you really need to challenge them to get the best out of the group.
“In big moments we need our leaders to really stand up and they did.”
Goulding, who scored the equaliser with 16 seconds to play in the last quarter, splashed eight of United’s 13 points in overtime.
DJ Kennedy and Casper Ware were exceptional in the momentum-shifting victory.
But Kennedy, who monstered the visitors at both ends, said United has to be “way more locked in” for the semi-final series against Sydney Kings.
“We know Sydney is going to be a great team that we’re facing and the little things - these slow starts - we got to be able to adjust that and fix that, we can’t come out against a team like that in a situation this, you got to be way more locked in,” Kennedy said.
Kennedy’s “attack” mentality carried United early, but the athletic wing, who pulled down a game-high 15 rebounds including nine offensive boards, credited Ware as his “player of the game”, for the shutdown role on Wildcats star Bryce Cotton.
“I think offensive rebounds is a momentum killer for teams and I was able to get a lot of those today and get to the line from those,” spark plug Kennedy said.
“If you ask me, Casper was the player of the game, he was big for us, obviously people are so used to him scoring but his defence tonight was great.
“I can’t say enough about it, to make everything tough for Cotton and to be able to get our offence up and locked in, it just shows you how much of a great player he is and a team player.”
David Barlow (back soreness) managed just 12 minutes but is expected to be fully fit for the semi-finals.
GILBERT GARDINER ON ...
THE WIN
Hell hath no fury like United scorned. After blowing a chance to clinch the minor premiership last Thursday night, Melbourne stormed back from an 11-point deficit to upset Perth Wildcats 81-70 in overtime at Melbourne Arena.
The Wildcats looked set for a nice win before Chris Goulding, who splashed a trademark three with 16 seconds in regulation to send the game into overtime, Mitch McCarron and DJ Kennedy caught fire down the stretch.
United started strongly on the back of tireless defensive efforts but struggled to capitalise on the scoreboard. Kennedy starred, registering 21 points, 15 rebounds and six assists, at both ends of the game.
A block on Bryce Cotton and recovery in the paint proved instrumental as United turned a four-point lead into an 11-point matchwinning margin after three unanswered Goulding and Casper Ware buckets.
PURR-FECT WILDCATS
The most successful franchise in NBL history, Perth Wildcats, has timed its run to perfection. It was not all that ago the Wildcats faced the reality of potentially missing out on the playoffs altogether and yet, in Melbourne, the Red Army roared as the Wildcats clinched the coveted No. 1 seed.
The minor premiership is purely gravy for the well-drilled, Bryce Cotton-led Wildcats, with top-billing comes a saloon passage to the championship with home-court advantage throughout.
The NBL champion, whomever it may be, will need to go through Perth to win it in 2019.
NEXT MAN UP
Chris Goulding said it himself recently, after United’s win over Adelaide, that the reigning champions have a lot of players that have been “the man” on their teams previously.
Well, it is time these men stand up or together, or kiss the championship defence goodbye. United conked out at the intersection of contender and pretender on Sunday before DJ Kennedy stamped his authority on the contest.
A four-time winner of The Basketball Tournament, a single-elimination pro-am featuring 72 teams and offering a winner-takes-all $2m prize money, the Pittsburgh native led Sunday’s revival.
THE EQUATION
Melbourne United will open a best-of-three semi-finals series against Andrew Bogut’s Sydney Kings at Melbourne Arena on Thursday, February 28, with game two in Sydney on Sunday, March 3.
If required, the decider will be played in Melbourne on March 5.
Home-court advantage, historically, has been crucial in deciding the NBL championship with 31 of the 40 titles won by the top-two teams at the end of the home-and-away season.
Originally published as Melbourne United secure home-court advantage after thrilling overtime win over Perth Wildcats
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