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Melbourne United got the job done at home with a 14-point win over the Sydney Kings to go 7-0 in a great start to the season.
Starting the game in hot form United led at quarter time 34-17 thanks to star Chris Goulding who was hitting threes at will. The Kings were able to slow the scoring in the second quarter winning it 20-16 to trail at half time 50-37 with Marcus Thornton keeping them within scoring distance.
United were able to win a tight contest in the third quarter 26-20 with Blanchfield and Kickert dominating play.
The last quarter the Kings continued to fight hard and were able to pull back the margin but weren’t able to get within striking distance of a lead, ultimately losing by 14.
MVP of the game was United’s Daniel Kickert who scored 21 points and had the better of Al Harrington (9 points). Thornton top scored for the Kings with 29 points and kept them within reach for most of the game.
The Kings are now 2-5 and their season is slipping away.
Final score
Melbourne 96
Sydney 82
Melbourne United are looking to maintain their perfect undefeated record when they host the Sydney Kings this afternoon. Join The Roar for live scores and commentary from the game at 3:00pm AEDT.
Sydney haven’t had a great start to the new NBL season. They dropped four of their first five matches but are now 2-4 and sitting seventh on the ladder after a win over Townsville on Friday night.
Melbourne on the other hand are in a great position – comfortably on top of the ladder as the only undefeated team left in the league, they went up to a 6-0 record with their 2-point win over the Wildcats earlier in the week.
A big part of the reason for Melbourne’s success so far this season is their miserly defence, which is conceding less than 76 points per game. At the moment, they are the hardest team to score against in the NBL.
A win for the Kings would see them shoot up the ladder to at least fifth, and possibly higher with a solid margin. But, it’s a big task. They will either have to crack the tough nut that is Melbourne’s defence, or make a big defensive effort themselves.
Perth managed to shutdown Melbourne’s offense at times and that brought them so very close to a win, but it’s a big ask for the Kings to do the same.
They’ll be looking at Al Harrington – playing his second game for the team – as well as Julian Khazzough and Marcus Thornton – to get plenty of points on the board and give them a chance.
Melbourne will not make it easy for them however and after a nailbiting win over the Wildcats will be looking to have a more comfortable victory this time around.
If they do get the victory it will make them 7-0, three wins ahead of the Perth Wildcats in second place (though the Wildcats have played one less game).
Prediction: Melbourne by 17.
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