Clark key as United head on the road

As Melbourne United head back on the road, making sure they get strong contributions from their full collection of stars will be crucial.

This includes import guard Ian Clark, who has established himself as one of the league’s best shooters from beyond the arc.

The NBA and NBL championship winner has come up huge across United’s four-game winning streak, averaging 16 points per game on 60% shooting from deep.

Looking at how the Taipans guarded the ladder leaders in their first meeting, Head Coach Dean Vickerman believes putting an elite marksman like Clark on the floor will make a significant difference come Sunday.

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“I think Cairns does a good job of really helping off different guys and trying to take away key guys,” he explained.

“Putting an extra shooter on the floor at different times frees a lot of other people up, whether that be the bigs rolling to the rim or whether that be the other guards as well.

“Having him (Clark) back in the lineup is really important to us.”

The American missed the first meeting between the Tapians and United, but is confident he and his teammates will be able to step up in the New Year’s Eve matchup.

Speaking ahead of the game, Clark touched on how much he is enjoying his basketball in Melbourne.

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“I’m feeling very comfortable,” he said.

“Coach has done a great job in putting all of us in positions to be successful. I think that everybody has bought into their role, specifically myself, I’m just having fun playing.

“Just being able to be on the floor competing, especially with these guys, because they’re a fun group to do it with and you know everybody is pulling for each other.”

Fans can tune in on ESPN via Kayo and Foxtel from 7:30pm on Sunday evening.