Match Recap: NBL25 Blitz, Game 1 v Cairns Taipans

Melbourne United have picked up a victory in their opening game of the NBL Blitz, beating the Cairns Taipans by seven points.

It was a slow start for United, with what would have been the team’s opening score, a Chris Goulding three, waved away due to a shotclock issue.

Not one to be denied, Goulding proved his shotmaking skill, cashing in from deep immediately after the clock had been fixed.

Clearly looking to adjust and play the sharpshooter closer, Cairns was too aggressive, fouling CG43 on his next attempt from beyond the arc, leading to three easy free-throws.

Matthew Dellavedova then got in on the action from long-range, splashing two looks of his own, while the likes of Ian Clark, Jack White and Rob Loe worked their way inside for buckets.

Despite this, turnovers (6) and fouls (9) hampered United, allowing the Taipans to come away with easy points and take a four-point lead into the first break.

Needing to tighten things up, United looked to their veteran guards to get the team back on track.

Clark, Dellavedova, and Shea Ili all got inside for scores, with the latter tallying six points in less than two minutes to push Melbourne back into the lead.

With the momentum back on their side, United’s stars shined, as White skied high for a pair of alley-oop slams, and Goulding connected on another triple, as well as an and-one layup.

Again, fouls proved to be the major issue for Melbourne, ultimately sending the Taipans to the free-throw line 28 times in the first half for 21 points.

Despite this glaring issue, United were able to keep the scores level leading into the major break.

After a back and forth start to the third period, Melbourne’s depth took centre stage, with contributors across the lineup collaborating on a 15-0 run.

Some of the highlights of the momentum-shifting stretch included a Dellavedova and-one finish, a pair of threes from Tanner Krebs and Kyle Bowen, and a tip-in from Rob Loe.

This helped United take a 70-64 lead into the final term.

Looking to put the game away, Melbourne leant on their leaders, with Ili getting to the hoop for a layup, Marcus Lee going upstairs for an alley-oop, and Clark finding the bottom of the net from the mid-range. 

This however was not enough to hold off the Taipans, who fought back and tied the game with 3 minutes remaining.

With the contest up for grabs, Ian Clark almost single-handedly removed all hope Cairns had of picking up the win.

Leading by one point, Clark scored five points in five seconds before feeding a cutting White for a dunk on the following play to give United the lead it needed to secure the victory.

The win, combined with winning three of the four quarters, means Melbourne come away from Saturday evening with six points for the NBL Blitz ladder.

United will next play the Brisbane Bullets on Tuesday 10 September at 5pm. The game will be streamed live on Kayo.