NBL semi finals, sudden death: Melbourne United v Wildcats, Illawarra Hawks v SEM Phoenix
Trey Kell has fired Illawarra to the NBL Championship Series after thrasing a stunned South East Melbourne Phoenix to set up a decider between the league’s two best teams.
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The Illawarra Hawks soared into their first National Basketball League title decider in eight years after a ruthless 126-96 rout of South East Melbourne Phoenix at WIN Entertainment Centre in Wollongong on Wednesday night.
Front-runners and favourites for most of the season, the Hawks used a spectacular first half to punch their ticket to the best-of-five NBL grand final series against Melbourne United, starting in Wollongong on Saturday night.
It will be Illawarra’s fifth grand final appearance in their 47-year history, and first since being swept by Perth Wildcats in 2017, as they chase just their second championship to go with the banner they won in 2001.
Phoenix, who squared the semi-final series with a 101-94 win at John Cain Arena last Sunday, looked legless and listless from the opening tip and had no answers to Illawarra’s early onslaught.
A sold-out Sandpit crowd roared themselves hoarse as the Hawks posted their biggest ever winning margin in a post-season game, surpassing a 19-point victory over the long defunct West Sydney Westars in 1986.
FAST STARTERS
The high-flying Hawks piled on a season-high 70 points in the first half to take an unassailable 70-44 lead into half-time.
Scoring at will from the paint and the perimeter, the league’s highest scoring team knocked down 11 three-pointers in the first half to effectively end South East Melbourne’s season.
The explosive start allowed the Hawks to control the tempo all game and they never let up.
Averaging a league-high 101.2 points a game this season, a record for 40-minute games, the Hawks had passed that mark by three-quarter time when they took a 103-64 lead into the final period.
On a record-setting night for Illawarra, their total of 126 points was the most in a play-off game by any Hawks team.
KELL’S BELLS
Illawarra import Trey Kell III was an unstoppable force in the first half, pouring in 26 points to carry the Hawks on his broad shoulders.
Kell had 16 points on five-of-five shooting in the first quarter and added 10 more in the second, making amends after being held to eight points on one-of-10 shooting in Game 2.
A man of actions rather than words, Kell was clearly locked in when interviewed by Fox Sports as he headed to the locker-room at half-time.
“Trying not to be trash like last time,” Kell said.
“Don’t let off the gas.”
One of Illawarra’s two league MVP candidates, Kell finished with 30 points, five assists and four rebounds and will be keen to carry that form into the title-deciding series against Melbourne United.
THAT HURT
After posting 30 points in their Game 2 victory in Melbourne, to keep the series alive, Phoenix import Matt Hurt had a night he would rather forget.
Hurt was nowhere to be seen in the first half, when the game was still a contest.
By the time he made his first basket, with 3min 15secs left in the second quarter, the game was as good as gone.
Adding injury insult, Hurt was a victim of friendly fire early in the third period when he copped an accidental whack in the chops from Phoenix teammate Matt Kenyon.
With the result well out of reach, Hurt sat on the bench for the fourth quarter and by full-time, he had just four points on one-of-six shooting and one rebound to his name.
BLANCHFIELD OF DREAMS
Enjoying a rare start, veteran Hawks forward Todd Blanchfield turned back the clock with a spectacular shooting display from deep on his way to 28 points.
The 33-year-old journeyman hit eight three-pointers from 12 attempts, equalling his career high and contributing the lion’s share of Illawarra’s team total of 19 triples.
Blanchfield, in his second stint at Illawarra, began his career in Townsville in 2009 and has had stints at Perth, Melbourne United and Sydney but is yet to win an NBL championship.
The veteran Todd Blanchfield doing it all 🤩
— NBL (@NBL) March 5, 2025
Watch live on ESPN 📺 pic.twitter.com/CWkS2D6fKd
GOULDING FIRES LAST SHOT IN UTD WIN
Melbourne United has weathered an early Bryce Cotton storm to overturn a 14-point deficit and book a spot in the NBL Championship Series.
United had to overcome the mental hurdle of their game two capitulation from 20 points up and found themselves in a rough spot again as Wildcats five-time MVP Cotton lit up with 16 first quarter points.
But United’s veterans rose to the challenge.
Shooting guard Ian Clark capped an incredible semi final series with 38 points off the bench.
The cool-handed American shot 14-19 from the field, including six threes in a remarkable performance.
Not to be out-shone though was United captain Chris Goulding.
Goulding produced a three-point barrage with 30 points, including a stunning 9-12 from three-point land.
When Cotton airballed with the Wildcats trailing by three with 1.38 to go, Clark transitioned to put United up five and you sensed it was United’s game to lose.
But this series would be decided by the finest of margins.
JESSE WAGSTAFF OMG 😳
— NBL (@NBL) March 4, 2025
Watch live on ESPN 📺 pic.twitter.com/7nOPutMog6
DOWN TO THE WIRE
On the second last play of regulation, the Wildcats had three chances to tie the game up, with Kristian Doolittle and Cotton missing, but veteran Jesse Wagstaff’s experience shone through as he drained a game-tying three.
United had 2.6 seconds left to manufacture a score and they went inside to Goulding, who was fouled by Ben Henshall with 0.8 on the clock.
Goulding scored the first free throw before presumably deliberately missing his second to force the Wildcats into a full court heave and Dylan Windler’s shot went wide.
United has a chance to atone for last year’s Championship Series heartbreak against Tasmania JackJumpers.
Dean Vickerman’s team will go in search of their first title since 2021.
“One of the greatest games we’ve seen in NBL history,” Andrew Gaze exclaimed in commentary.
DYNAMIC DOOLITTLE
Doolittle had his fingerprints all over the ball for the Wildcats in a stellar 37-point, 10-rebound and five-assist game.
It was cruel to see Doolittle on the losing side of the ledger.
Cotton left his best performance for the last game of the series, scoring 33 points with five rebounds and six assists.
The question now is, will this be the last time we see Cotton in a Wildcats uniform?
You can bet John Rillie will move heaven and earth to keep the five-time NBL MVP.
The Wildcats picked up where they left off from game two on Saturday night, racing to a 37-26 quarter time lead.
After being kept relatively quiet in the first two games, the 32-year-old Cotton piled on 16 first quarter points, including three triples, and the signs were ominous.
CLARK COUNTERATTACK
United veteran Ian Clark went against the grain of the game and kept United in the contest.
Clark converted on four of his first five threes and hunted the ball with confidence.
The 33-year-old almost single handedly eroded what was a 14 point Wildcats lead.
CG43 EXPLOSION
Then United sharpshooter Chris Goulding entered the chat.
The 36-year-old converted on his first six three-point attempts to give United the lead for the first time and move past Wildcats legend Ricky Grace (145) on the all-time three-pointers made in finals list.
A couple of sloppy United plays saw the Wildcats go to half time with a 62-58 lead as Cotton and Clark led the way with 22 points apiece.
Jack White, who endured the yips from the free throw line at a crucial moment late in game two, was a non-factor with 0/4 from the field in the first half.
But United never lost faith in their forward, going straight to him after half-time, and he buried two threes and created a three-point play as part of a 12-point third quarter.
It got to the stage where every possession mattered.
A huge moment came when Goulding made a Superman-like dive to save the ball from going out and went up the other end to knock down a three.
The next play, Goulding hit another three, giving United a handy seven-point buffer.
The Wildcats never gave up, taking it to the very last second for United to salute for their home fans.
NBL SCOREBOARD
Melbourne United 113 (Clark 38 Goulding 30) d Perth Wildcats 112 (Doolittle 37 Cotton 33)
Melbourne United wins the best-of-three series 2-1.
At John Cain Arena, Melbourne
THE SERIES SO FAR
An extraordinary second half from Dylan Windler kept the Wildcats alive in the Semi-Final series against Melbourne United on Saturday.
Windler piled on 20 points and brought down seven rebounds in the second half, to lead a remarkable comeback by the Wildcats, who claimed a 96-89 win at RAC Arena.
In Game 1, a trademark Chris Goulding scoring blitz was the impetus for Melbourne United to overturn a half-time deficit and take game one of its best-of-three semi final series 105-93 over Perth Wildcats at John Cain Arena.
For Marcus Lee, this one’s personal.
There’s a little asterisk nagging at the Melbourne United centre as he gears up for a chance at back-to-back titles.
The 211cm giant was part of last season’s history-making Tasmania JackJumpers’ squad that shocked United in a five-game grand final epic.
But the 30-year-old had to watch from the sidelines as the JackJumpers took down United after he tore his medial cruciate ligament in game three of the series.
“I want to win one without the asterisk on it,” he told Code Sports.
“I want to win a championship in my own respective.”
Originally published as NBL semi finals, sudden death: Melbourne United v Wildcats, Illawarra Hawks v SEM Phoenix
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