Why Adelaide 36ers and Melbourne United ‘revenge’ game could be one of the biggest of the NBL25 season
Adelaide and United will be on their best behaviour in their first meeting since those ugly crowd scenes in Melbourne but once the ball tips and the hostile 36ers crowd begins heaving, expect fireworks.
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The NBL couldn’t have written the script better.
Melbourne United jets into Adelaide on Saturday night for the first meeting between the two clubs since the infamous ‘Affray at JCA’ crowd clash that rocked the league in one of the most anticipated regular season clashes in recent memory.
That incendiary moment at John Cain Arena sparked a private war of words between the two clubs — and a more passive public PR battle — amid allegations of racism, throughout a long, drawn out investigation and tribunal process that resulted in the suspensions of a pair of 36ers imports, a life ban for one fan and a 10-year exclusion for another.
The rematch will be played out in front of a packed, hostile SA crowd, some privately fear will be only too willing to serve it up to the travelling party — with the November 17 flashpoint that could still ultimately be the downfall of their beloved Sixers’ season still fresh in their collective minds.
It’s understood NBL integrity officer Shannon Bodley is set to be in the building to oversee proceedings and ensure things don’t get out of hand again but, while on alert, the NBL is expecting the clubs and crowd to be on their best behaviour.
There’ll be a new pep in the Sixers step, too. Weeks of doom and gloom in Adelaide that culminated in a trio of 20-plus-point defeats and a crisis meeting between the coaching staff and playing group has given way to new hope after a rousing victory over the Kings in Sydney.
The 36ers will be keen to show that effort wasn’t just a sugar hit against a United side that had looked close to unbeatable until a four-game losing streak pulled them back to the pack.
All the main protagonists will be there. Larger than life former NBA man Montrezl Harrell, who copped the biggest suspension (three games), remained an animated presence in the win over Sydney after being among a number of Sixers players to tell teammates to hold him to account during their honesty session.
Fiery guard Kendric Davis, rubbed out for two games for making contact with a fan, will be out to continue his MVP-calibre form since returning. He’ll get plenty of attention from the NBL’s reigning Defensive Player of the Year Shea Ili, who was third-man into the initial on-court JCA scrap that began with big United agitator Rob Loe’s entanglement with Harrell.
The Kiwi bulldog copped one from the 201cm American forward as they went toe-to-toe.
Both teams have struggled to recapture their form in the face of the controversy, combining for five wins and 10 losses since they last met (Adelaide 2-6, United 3-4).
A win over lowly Cairns put Melbourne’s season back on track, meaning both clubs go in with winning form.
The Sixers will be doubly inspired to dial up their defence, given it’s the first game of the NBL’s Summer Shootout concept. United, of course, chose the 36ers as the team they would score the most points against of on of any of their away games in January.
With $50,000 to the NBL team that racks up the highest score against their chosen opponent, it’s not a bad shout from United coach Dean Vickerman and Co, given the Sixers’ defensive rating is on pace to be the worst ever in the modern 40-minute era, currently conceding 123.2 points per 100 possessions, per Spatial Jam.
Throw in a 350th NBL game for Vickerman — his 62.8 per cent winning clip second only to the great Brian Goorjian among the 19 coaches who have presided over 250 or more NBL games — and you’ve got all the makings of a night to remember.
DON’T BELIEVE THE LACK OF HYPE
The only thing really missing is the real meaty histrionics that can often ignite a highly-anticipated sporting clash.
The best we’ve been treated to so far came from the always quotable, but very tired Dejan Vasiljevic in a post-game press conference where the sharpshooter labelled the clash a “revenge game”, given United poured salt into the Sixers’ wounds with a 27-point hammering the last time they met.
“It’ll be packed out, it’ll be very hostile, it’ll be exciting, it’s a good build-up for the league,” Vasiljevic said.
Presumably warned off by either the NBL, their clubs, or both, most players and coaches were playing a pretty straight bat this week whenever they were asked about the potential for fireworks on Saturday night.
“Our guys, we are super-pumped about this game, really, just every game that we’ve got on the schedule,” big import Jarell Martin offered.
“Guys (were) not really dialled in and too much of the altercation that happened, we’re just ready to go out there and try to get victories and compete for postseason.”
“Our fans, they’ve been electric throughout the whole course of the season, so I think they’ll just come in and continue doing what they’re doing, being that sixth man for us.”
United guard Matthew Dellavedova, the savvy NBA and Olympic veteran whose seen it all, has made an art form of deflecting emotive questions and he had this to say about the potential for crowd hostility on Thursday: “always a great atmosphere, it’s always a tough road game, they love basketball over there and it’s been that way for a long time, so always a fun place to play.”
And even Vickerman equated the 10k strong Adelaide crowd with those of Cairns, New Zealand and Sydney: “home fans are there to do a job for their home team”.
EVEN LARRY’S PUMPED
NBL owner Larry Kestelman’s took his first steps into the league when he purchased the Melbourne Tigers and rebranded as United.
Twelve years on, he’s sold the last of his stake in the club and, while there remains a perception of favouritism — that he stringently denies — the massive hoops fan is all in on the Sixers.
“I love it, I love it, go 36ers,” Kestelman says when asked about the weekend blockbuster.
“This is what people don’t understand. I’ve been a Melbourne Tiger and Melbourne United before I was NBL, so if people want me to not care, that’s just not who I am.
“My number one care is about the league, and it’s good for NBL if the 36ers win at home after all the criticism, the crowd (issue), I wish them all the success.
“I think it’d be great if they won and a bit of passion is not a bad thing.”
CRISIS AVERTED?
A little proof will be in the pudding, come Saturday night, if the Sixers’ renewed effort and connection carries over.
Martin says there’s a “new energy” among the group since last Sunday’s crisis meeting.
“Man, we know we’ve had some ups and downs, like a roller coaster, but we’ve been professionals and we had a nice meeting amongst the team and came together and put everything on the table,” he said.
“Guys, were all dialled in against Sydney and the result turned out in our favour, so hopefully we can keep this momentum and keep chipping away, one game at a time.
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Originally published as Why Adelaide 36ers and Melbourne United ‘revenge’ game could be one of the biggest of the NBL25 season
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