NBL news 2024 United shine in star’s 450th game as, Kings dominate Taipans
Melbourne United stormed home to a massive victory over the 36ers in Chris Goulding’s 450th game as, the Sydney Kings didn’t miss their star point guard as they cruised to victory over Cairns.
Melbourne United star Chris Goulding’s 450th NBL game had the potential to end on a sour note as he hobbled to the rooms after a spectacular fall late in his side’s 106-79 trouncing of Adelaide 36ers at John Cain Arena on Sunday.
A total defensive buy-in from United saw it cruise to victory after trailing by five at quarter-time, but 35 year old sharpshooter Goulding sprained a knee while closing out on a shot from 36ers forward Nick Marshall in the fourth quarter.
Goulding’s knee was checked out by the United medicos and thankfully cleared of serious damage, but he spent the remainder of the game on the bench.
The 36ers had designs of claiming a second big scalp in a weekend after toppling Sydney Kings on Friday night and started strongly, but United demonstrated the mentality that saw them reach last year’s grand final series and ensured their home loss to Cairns Taipans last week was an aberration.
Chris Goulding has exited the game following what appears to be an ankle injury.
— NBL (@NBL) October 13, 2024
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United had scoring weapons across the board with six players with double digit scoring.
The 36ers had won three games in a row leading in, but they are a tier beneath United as it stands.
It was a high-powered start to the game with both offences going back and forth.
Sunday Dech got the 36ers going with two early three-pointers, but they were matched by United’s Ian Clark.
36ers forward Lat Mayen amped up the crowd with a jam after skirting the baseline unattended due to a United defensive breakdown.
The 36ers went to quarter time with a 29-24 lead, largely thanks to the work of centre Isaac Humphries, who was dominant in the paint with nine first quarter points against his former club, but he was kept in check late, finishing with 16.
United unleashed the guard dogs in the second period, stifling the 36ers with an improved defensive intensity, including utilising a full court press at times.
The uptick on defence saw United restrict the 36ers to just 23 in the quarter.
With his shot from long range not dropping, Goulding started to take the ball to the hoop with good effect, while the slicing and dicing of Clark with a game-high 12 at the half had United in the lead 58-52.
The middle period of the game would’ve been frustrating for the 36ers, who were being pressured into errors by a scrappy United.
It was consistent hard-nosed defence from United, who opened up a massive 79-60 lead at three quarter time - a lead that was never threatened in the fourth.
MILESTONE MAN
Goulding had a rough start to his 450th game, missing on his first four three-point attempts.
The 35-year-old eventually got his game as he got aggressive taking the ball to the hoop.
Fittingly, Goulding connected on his fifth three-point attempt, which moved him into the top 25 of points scored in NBL history.
Chris Goulding is heating up in Game 450 🔥
— NBL (@NBL) October 13, 2024
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NOT IN OUR HOUSE
United forward Jack White gave former NBA star Montrezl Harrell a rude welcome to Melbourne.
Harrell wanted to put on a show for the crowd, soaring for a two-handed throwdown, but the athletic White met the veteran at the rim and spiked the ball away.
The 30-year-old power forward was kept in check by United, finishing with just 12 points on 3-9 shooting and nine rebounds.
Montrezl Harrell is a beast in the paint 🦾
— NBL (@NBL) October 13, 2024
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DJ OFF TUNE
Dejan Vasiljevic, the leading scorer in the NBL, averaging 22.6 points per game heading in, was given little room to breathe.
From the first play, United’s defensive star Shea Ili was up in his face.
DJ finished with just eight points on 3-12 shooting.
Kings dominate weakened Taipans
No Jaylen Adams, no worries.
Sydney has overcome the absence of their star point guard with a forgotten veteran stepping up to the plate in a big way.
Despite seeing just 43 minutes of court time through the opening five games, Shaun Bruce showed he still has plenty to offer with a lights-out shooting display.
The former Taipan couldn’t miss in the first half, draining all five attempts from long range to post 18 points and help the Kings to a healthy 53-39 lead at halftime.
By the time he brought up his sixth triple of the afternoon, a career high, the Kings were well on their way to improving their record to 4-2 after hammering Cairns 99-73.
Bruce’s blitz could go a long way to solving their back-up point guard issues, with Tyler Robertson starting in place of Adams and producing a solid 10 points and three assists in 20 minutes.
His final tally of 21 points equaled a career high, but Bruce was modest in his appraisal, opting to pay tribute to his teammates for getting him good looks.
“It was on the back of good offence, getting stops and the energy on the ball,” Bruce said.
“You throw the ball to Xavier Cooks and four guys are going to have their eyes on him. You’ve just got to be ready to shoot.
“We probably didn’t have a good mix of that early in the year. The energy in the group today was different and I just hope the guys feel that.
“I was just the beneficiary of some good basketball.”
TOOHEY BRINGS HEAT
The Kings had a distinct lack of energy in their loss to Adelaide, and Alex Toohey took it upon himself to ensure that wouldn’t be the case against Cairns.
His draft stocks continue to rise as he played a major part in Sydney getting the early jump on the Taipans to open up a 12-0 advantage.
Toohey had five points and three boards inside three minutes, with the highlight a huge block on Akoldah Gak and going down the other end for an and-one opportunity.
He had the 11,076 strong crowd at Qudos Bank Arena on their feet in the third quarter with a lovely move, drive to the basket and huge dunk as the Kings opened up a big double digit lead.
THE MAN WHO CAN’T BE MOVED
Opposition forwards must dread having to bang bodies with Keli Leaupepe.
The Loyola Marymount product has made a big impression after getting the nod from Brian Goorjian to start and his influence in the paint was on full display.
His six offensive boards through the first three quarters helped the Kings to dominate the second chance points, one of the many areas Sydney had the wood over Cairns in.
STAR IMPORT OFF TARGET
With no Taran Armstrong or Tanner Groves for their double header, the Taipans really needed Rob Edwards to lead from the front.
The American just couldn’t get it to happen however, missing his first five field goals and finishing with just five points on 2-12 shooting.
Cairns coach Adam Forde said the heavy defeat was the wake-up call they needed as they slipped to 3-3 for the season.
“From a coaching perspective, if you were going to take anything from this, it’s probably the smack in the mouth we needed,” Forde said.
“We run a different race from everybody else. We’ve got Tanner out at the moment and he might be out for a little bit.
“We’re not in a position where we can go and get someone like Montrezl Harrell, so it provides opportunities for guys to blossom into that.”
Bullets breakthrough with first win
A big man domination from Tyrell Harrison has sparked Brisbane Bullets to its first win of the NBL season over the only remaining winless team South East Melbourne Phoenix at John Cain Arena on Saturday night.
Harrison had a monster double-double for the Bullets, taking the honours over Phoenix’s lone centre Jordan Hunter with 21 points and 17 rebounds, including 12 offensive, as the Bullets survived a late drive to the hoop from Phoenix guard Derrick Walton Jr to win 87-85 in a thriller.
The Bullets totally dominated on the boards 50-33 as their big man duo of Harrison and Rocco Zikarsky made the Phoenix team look like midgets.
It was a break-out game for import James Batemon in a Bullets uniform with 20 points
American guard Keandre Cook was a constant threat with 15 points, seven rebounds and four assists, while Casey Prather scored 15.
The Phoenix are rock bottom, slumping to 0-5., while the Bullets improved to 1-3.
Walton Jr was a stand out for the Phoenix with 19 points and five assists, while Matt Hurt contributed a game high 24.
The Bullets settled the better, starting the game on a 9-4 run with Harrison anchoring the paint and Cook pushing the pace.
But the Phoenix took over the momentum, going on an impressive 14-0 run as the tempo lifted.
Hurt’s offensive talent was on show as the Phoenix took a 23-18 lead into quarter time.
The Bullets reset in the second quarter and came out fast withBatemon trying to end the debate over his worth to the team.
A 27 year old guard, Batemon had endured a disappointing start to the campaign, averaging just 5.7 points per game leading in, but he well and truly eclipsed his average with a scintillating 14 points before half-time, including four three pointers.
The Phoenix’s 49-45 half time lead was largely due to Hurt’s offensive prowess.
With 13 first half points, Hurt, a 24-year-old with NBA experience with Memphis Grizzlies, showed his exquisite touch from mid-range.
The Phoenix’s ugly defending was on show for the start of the third as the Bullets went on a 6-0, prompting a quick time out from coach Mike Kelly.
TENACIOUS TYRELL
Harrison was the dominant big man on the floor, helping the Bullets wrestle back the lead.
The Bullets had built up such a head of steam that a downhill Mitch Norton took out the camera man under the basket as his team opened up an eight point lead late in the third.
Just when it appeared as though the Bullets were on the march, Walton Jr found his range with seven points late in the third to trim the deficit to two at three quarter time.
The Bullets left the door open for the Phoenix late, but held on.
OUT OF SORTS
Nathan Sobey looks like he’s playing with the weight of the world on his shoulders.
The Phoenix guard’s rough start to the season continued with five points on 1/7 shooting.
It was not the kind of revenge game the veteran wanted against his former club.
AVERTING DANGER
Quick thinking from referee Ken Widgeon might have averted disaster mid-play during the first quarter.
With the game being played at a breakneck speed and the crowd getting excited, one of the Phoenix fans’ hand clappers exploded and launched on to the court.
Widgeon scooped the broken clapper off the court at full tilt to ensure the safety of the players.
HAWKS HAMMER THE JACKJUMPERS
by Robert Dillon
Illawarra Hawks have produced the perfect response to scathing criticism from coach Justin Tatum by handing defending NBL champions Tasmania JackJumpers a club-record 109-76 hammering at the Snakepit in Wollongong on Saturday.
Beaten 102-100 in a boilover by Adelaide 36ers last week, the Hawks were lambasted at the post-match press conference by Tatum, who accused them of being “lethargic”, “complacent” and showing “no intensity in defence”.
His spray had the desired effect, as the Hawks rebounded to top form to post their fourth victory in five games this season.
The 33-point margin eclipsed the New Zealand Breakers’ 94-62 victory in 2022, which was the heaviest defeat of Tasmania’s four-season NBL history.
It also ended Tasmania’s four-game winning streak on Illawarra’s home turf.
JACKJUMPERS CRASH TO EARTH
After winning the title in just their third season, the JackJumpers’ title defence has encountered something of a reality check.
Tassie were hoping last week’s 84-79 win against Perth Wildcats might kick-start their campaign, but instead they slipped to their third defeat in five starts and face some soul-searching before Friday’s blockbuster home clash with Sydney Kings.
They’ll be hoping to emulate Illawarra’s impressive form reversal.
HAWKS OFF TO A FLYER
After last week’s tardy start against Adelaide, when they allowed the 36ers to grab an early 7-0 lead, the Hawks were in no mood to again be so accommodating for their visitors.
Illawarra, the highest-scoring team in the league, burst out of the blocks with a steal and a Tyler Harvey three-pointer and dominated proceedings to forge a commanding 32-17 lead by quarter-time.
BODY ON THE LINE
Illawarra’s commitment and desperation was best exemplified by forward Daniel Grida, who midway through the first quarter was so determined to keep a ball in play that, showing no thoughts of self-preservation. he catapulted over the courtside advertising signage and ended up sprawled out in the crowd.
WORDS OF WARNING
JackJumpers coach Scott Roth is renowned as a straight shooter, and he did not mince words during a second-quarter time-out.
With his team already trailing by 20 points, Roth warned them they would “get beat by 50” unless they started to show some urgency in transitioning from offence to defence.
Tassie briefly rallied, with Jordon Crawford nailing a series of three-pointers, but the home team tightened their grip to lead 57-39 at half-time.
BEST FOOT FORWARD
While big man Sam Froling (21 points) and imports Tyler Harvey (19) and Darius Days (15) led the scoring for the Hawks, nobody put in more effort than bench scrapper William Hickey.
Hickey, wearing one red boot and one blue boot, put the slipper into Tasmania with a fine all-round double, contributing 15 points, eight rebounds, three assists, two steals and two blocks in a real blue-collar effort.
The home team, meanwhile, increased their lead to 84-52 by three-quarter time and cruised home in the final period.
DJ, Harrell, star as 36ers claim third straight win
by Jason Phelan
The DJ Vasiljevic-inspired Adelaide 36ers saw off a furious second-half fightback by the Sydney Kings on Friday night to score an entertaining 10-point victory and make it three wins in a row.
Playing in an at-times heated contest against his old side, Vasiljevic shot a game-high 26 points to stretch the Sixers’ winning run at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre to seven games.
The Kings started brightly but were hampered by injuries, with Jaylen Adams unable to take part in the second half and Xavier Cooks hampered throughout.
Despite those setbacks, Sydney was still well in the contest late until Montrezl Harrell iced the game in his trademark style, the fan favourite taking flight to stuff home an athletic two-handed jam with a minute left on the clock.
Harrell was quiet early but instrumental down the stretch, finishing with 18 points and 14 rebounds, with Kendric Davis and Isaac Humphries also double-digit scorers.
Sydney coach Brian Goorjian had to reach deep into his bench, but was unable to find a winning combination, import Cam Oliver with a team-high 16 points.
DJ GETS HOT
Adelaide ranked near the top of the league in most offensive statistics after four games, but was last in defensive rating heading into the clash with the high-scoring Kings, so a shootout was always on the cards and that’s exactly how proceedings kicked off.
Most of the action was from long range in the opening minutes, with the Sixers the league’s top-ranked three-point percentage shooting team, with both teams averaging just over 11 triples made per match.
The visitors blasted out of the blocks with an 8-0 run and were 3-from-3 from outside the arc in the early going, with the 36ers missing their first two three-point attempts in a disjointed start.
But as Vasiljevic got hot, the Kings went cold, going 0-from-5 from three-point range, with the home side charging to a four-point lead at the first break on the back of 12 points to DJ.
MEDICAL ROOM
Sydney star Adams went to the bench in the second quarter with a lower back complaint and couldn’t make it back onto the court in a major blow to the visitors.
Cooks was also subdued with just six points in the first half, with some suggestion the star skipper was battling illness.
The Kings didn’t have a double-digit scorer at the main break, Keli Leaupepe with a team-high eight points.
With Davis and Humphries warming to the task, Adelaide went on 21-9 run to lead by as much as 16 before settling for 12-point halftime lead.
But with their backs against the wall, the Kings defied the odds to fight back, Cameron Oliver stepping up with nine points in the third quarter as the visitors went on a 13-3 run to slash the margin to just six points heading into the final term.
WELLS’ BIG CALL ON HARRELL FUTURE
by Matt Logue
Adelaide 36ers coach Mike Wells has left the door open for star NBA signing Montrezl Harrell to remain at the club even when big man Jarell Martin returns from a foot injury as early as late October.
Harrell, who collected the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year award in 2020, joined the Sixers in September as an injury-replacement for Martin.
The veteran power forward agreed to a short-term deal, but had scope to stay in Adelaide even when his role as an injury-replacement expired.
For Montrezl to extend his stay in Adelaide the club would need to deactivate a local player to accommodate the move.
Wells expects the former NBA mainstay to attract significant interest on the open market, but hopes he chooses to remain with the 36ers.
“He (Montrezl) is a very talented player, he has a ton of connections in the NBA and I’m sure that he is going to have a ton of different options,” Wells said about Harrell, who has averaged an impressive 16 points, 9.8 rebounds and 60 per cent shooting from the field in his four games to date.
“And hopefully his best option is the 36ers.”
Wells’ comments on Harrell come as Martin edges closer to a comeback from his foot injury.
The 36ers aren’t putting a time on it but there’s a realistic possibility the big man could be in uniform as soon as October 20 against Tasmania.
For now, coach Wells is focused on maintaining Adelaide’s winning momentum against the Sydney Kings at home on Friday night.
The 36ers head into the Kings clash full of confidence following back-to-back wins over the Phoenix and Illawarra.
Wells credits Adelaide’s turnaround after two losses to open NBL25 to a greater focus on the defensive end.
And while the 36ers are far from the finished product, the coach is taking confidence from his team’s renewed intensity in defence.
“I think we can be a very good defensive team,” he said.
“We’re a young group and we are still figuring dynamics out. Our defence has allowed us to hang in games against South East Melbourne and Illawarra.
“I thought our defensive commitment and attention to detail was better.”
The Adelaide 36ers came into round 3 under-fire after a 0-2 start.
— CODE Basketball (@codebballau) October 6, 2024
But after an emphatic response they leave the weekend with two wins and their season back on track.
Crosscourt âž¡ï¸ https://t.co/6KslhGE8kkpic.twitter.com/Mzk6LKx66N
Adelaide’s appetite to defend must be dialled in against an offensively potent Sydney side in Friday’s blockbuster.
The Kings possess scoring threats across the court through the likes of Xavier Cooks, Jaylen Adams and Alex Toohey.
Wells is fully aware of the challenge awaiting his charges against Sydney, but stressed they are a different side to the one that lost by eight points to the Kings in the opening round.
“We have a ton of respect for them (Sydney). Who they are, the talent they have, the coaching staff and the whole organisation,” he said.
“We’ve obviously grown a little bit and we’re in a different spot compared to where we were a few weeks ago, but so are they.
“We’ll just try and put our game plan together, compete and see where we are at.
“They (Sydney) have a lot of offensive weapons that you have to be dialled in on and they’ve got some bigs who can shoot the ball and space the floor.
“Then Adams and Cooks at the rim, so there are a bunch of different dynamics there.”
On the plus side for Adelaide, import guard Kendric Davis has discovered his finest form after having his long-term future in the league questioned.
Doubts were raised if Davis’ play at both ends was conducive to winning in the NBL.
The Texas-born talent took umbrage to the comments, fuelling him to drop 21 and 32 points in Adelaide’s past two wins.
According to Wells, the secret to Davis’ success has been simple.
“His attention and overall competitiveness and physicality on the ball has changed,” he said.
“I think he has played both sides of the ball really well. You can just feel his presence in a lot of different ways with this team.
“Whether it is offensively getting the ball down the floor and defensively his presence on the ball has been much different than the first few games.
“There was probably a learning curve. An import coming over and learning the NBL.
“You know, guys know how to play in this league and there is a lot of experience.”
NBL FRIDAY NIGHT
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ADELAIDE 36ERS VS SYDNEY KINGS
Adelaide Entertainment Centre
Tip-off at 7.30pm (AEDT)
Originally published as NBL news 2024 United shine in star’s 450th game as, Kings dominate Taipans
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