Melbourne United earn fifth consecutive finals berth as Phoenix keep faint hopes alive

Melbourne United sealed their place in the NBL semi-finals for the fifth consecutive season and South East Melbourne Phoenix kept their faint hopes alive for another week with wins on Sunday.

United easily accounted for Cairns Taipans 92-63 in Cairns while the Phoenix beat New Zealand Breakers 99-89 at Bendigo Stadium.

Shea Ili in action for United against Cairns.Credit: Getty Images

First-placed United will still need more wins to lock in a top-two finish and they are a win ahead of the red-hot Sydney Kings who are on an 11-game winning streak while the Phoenix know they will keep posting victories and rely on Perth Wildcats losing all their remaining games to have any hope of finishing fourth.

Chris Goulding was a key driver for United as they setup their victory scoring 20 points in 22 minutes while centre Jo Lual-Acuil Jr added another strong performance to his case for the MVP award finishing with 23 points, nine rebounds and three blocks.

Matthew Dellavedova has made teams pay for leaving him open from three-point range.Credit: Getty Images

Phoenix import Xavier Munford led his side with 25 points while centre Zhou Qi added 22 points against a Breakers side who were led by French young gun Ousmane Dieng who had 22 points and continues to impress US scouts ahead of the NBA Draft later this year.

Phoenix coach Simon Mitchell said his group had missed a chance to boost their percentage after leading by as much as 24 points before losing the final quarter 35-22.

“It’s a lost opportunity for this team to be better and close out the season in a right manner,” Mitchell said.

“God forbid someone ahead of us falls over badly and we equal [win-loss] records with them but miss out because we didn’t win by enough today.

“But there are still a lot of positives to like from today and there is a lot for this team to continue to drive forward with.”

Melbourne United host Brisbane Bullets at John Cain Arena on Saturday at 5.30pm AEST while South East Melbourne Phoenix host Tasmania JackJumpers at JCA on Sunday at 1pm AEST.

NBL round 19

Thursday

South East Melbourne Phoenix 88 v Melbourne United 90

Perth Wildcats 89 v New Zealand Breakers 80

Friday

Tasmania JackJumpers 87 v Cairns Taipans 80

Saturday

Brisbane Bullets 77 v Illawarra Hawks 108

Adelaide 36ers 77 v Sydney Kings 84

Sunday

New Zealand Breakers 89 v South East Melbourne Phoenix 99

Cairns Taipans 63 v Melbourne United 92

Monday

Adelaide 36ers v Brisbane Bullets, Adelaide Entertainment Centre, 7.30pm AEST

Tuesday

New Zealand Breakers v Sydney Kings, Bendigo Stadium, 7.30pm AEST

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