Bulla Recap: Melbourne United blow Sydney away for 11th straight win

Melbourne United’s depth was on full display on Sunday afternoon in a commanding win over the Sydney Kings at John Cain Arena.

The 103-78 win improved United’s franchise recording-breaking winning streak to 11 games.

Both teams came out with great offence to begin the game and it was led by superstars Chris Goulding and Casper Ware.

Goulding hit two threes in the opening three minutes of the game, while Ware answered the challenge with buckets of his own. Mitch McCarron was dishing out assists and when he delivered a beautiful no-look pass to Jo Lual-Acuil Jr. for a dunk halfway through the term, Melbourne held a 14-13 lead.

Ware replied soon after with a pair of triples in just over a minute of playing time to give the Kings a seven-point lead, 21-14, with just over three minutes to play in the quarter.

A Shaun Bruce buzzer-beating triple ended the term to give Sydney an 11-point lead, 31-20, at the first break.

The second quarter began with an and-1 play for Lual-Acuil Jr., while McCarron’s defence came to the fore with a strong block on Craig Moller on the following play. United’s intensity lifted in the second quarter and it was led by Scotty Hopson.

Hopson scored three times in just over two minutes of play to get Melbourne right back into the game. When he scored his 10^th point of the evening with six minutes to play in the second term, United was within one-point and when Mason Peatling scored to give Melbourne the lead, 36-35, Sydney was forced to call a time-out.

Both teams traded buckets through the middle stages of the quarter, while two late triples from Goulding gave his team a six-point lead at half time, 52-46. Goulding (16 points) and Hopson (12 points) had impressive first half performances, while Ware (15 points) was pacing the Kings.

The third quarter began with a barrage of Ware buckets as he put the Kings on his back. On the first possession of the quarter he knocked down a three, before scoring another two buckets in quick succession and then he dished out an assist to Bruce who knocked down a three-pointer, forcing Dean Vickerman to call a time-out as his team’s six-point half-time advantage had quickly turned into a four-point deficit, 58-54.

Moller made United pay with a triple to give the Kings a seven-point lead, 61-54, but from that point on it was United who had all the answers as an array of players stepped up.

Goulding, Sam McDaniel, David Barlow, McCarron and Lual-Acuil Jr. all hit big shots down the stretch of the third quarter to see United finish the term on a game-changing 16-4 run. With a quarter to play, Melbourne held a five-point advantage and owned all the momentum.

After taking back control of the game in the third term, United continued on their way in the fourth as Lual-Acuil Jr. and Yudai Baba were turning defence into offence with electrifying two-way play.

After throwing down a dunk, Baba drained two free throws with seven minutes remaining in the game to see United’s run stand at an incredible 29-7, giving them a 16-point lead, 83-67.

To Sydney’s credit, they came again and cut the deficit to 10 points halfway through the term.

When Peatling converted an and-1 play, it steadied things down and took the momentum away from the Kings.

Lual-Acuil Jr. brought out the party tricks as time winded down. His bucket after going to work in isolation made United fans stand and applaud and it clearly caught the ire of Daniel Kickert who pushed Lual-Acuil Jr. to the ground on the next trip down the floor.

The shove resulted in an unsportsmanlike foul on Kickert and four quick points for Lual-Acuil Jr as United ran out massive winners, 103-78 for a franchise-record 11 wins in a row.

Lual-Acuil Jr. (20 points, 9 rebounds and 3 blocks) was on a mission from the opening tip as he made sure that his presence was felt after getting his first start of the season. With superstar Jock Landale out due to injury, Lual-Acuil Jr. made the most of his opportunities.

Goulding (21 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists) hit four triples in another fine performance, while Peatling (12 points, 7 rebounds and 3 assists), Hopson (18 points) and McCarron (8 assists, 7 rebounds and 4 points) all gave great contributions.

The play of McDaniel (8 points) was full of heart as he was manned with the task of slowing down a firing Ware. McDaniel battled manfully in the second half and Ware was kept to just three points in the last term.

Ware (25 points and 3 assists) threatened to be the man for Sydney, while Moller (12 points and 11 rebounds) recorded a double-double.

The win sees United improve to 21-5 on the season to sit three wins clear of the second-placed Wildcats on the ladder. Next up for Melbourne is a mouth-watering Wednesday night showdown against Perth at John Cain Arena. Tip off is at 7:30pm.

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