Clutch Goulding performance guides Melbourne home

A Chris Goulding masterclass in the fourth term helped Melbourne United snap a four-game losing streak, taking care of the Illawarra Hawks at John Cain Arena on Sunday afternoon.

In what was a tight and tough game, United was able to overcome a slow start to come away with an important win to retain a top-two spot on the ladder.

United failed to jump out of the blocks with intensity and the Hawks took advantage as they grabbed a 14-4 lead after six minutes of play when Deng Deng connected from long range.

A Dean Vickerman timeout helped to swing the momentum as Melbourne, led by Mitch McCarron and Jock Landale, started to make inroads into the deficit. With Yudai Baba playing tremendous defence, United was able to get out and run, which kicked their offence into gear and at the first break, scores were tied at 19.

It was Illawarra who started the second quarter stronger with Justinian Jessup scoring key buckets, but consecutive triples to Baba and Sam McDaniel gave Melbourne their first lead of the game, 27-25, after three minutes of play in the term.

The offensive rebounds were an issue for United, with the Hawks taking advantage of second chance opportunities to level the scores at 29 halfway through the quarter. McDaniel produced a fine passage of play with just over four minutes to play in the first half when he stepped up to the plate with stellar defence on Tyler Harvey on one end, before getting the bucket on the other.

Landale was massive in the final few minutes of the second term, scoring three times before, the highlight of the first half happened. Chris Goulding made the United faithful stand up and applaud when he threw down a rare dunk. The sharpshooter drove to the bucket and with the lane open, he made the Hawks pay with a dunk, reminding everyone of his sneaky hops.

At the main break, Melbourne held a 39-35 lead with Landale (11 points and 5 rebounds) pacing United.

After a defensive-minded first half, that trend continued in the third quarter as both teams struggled offensively. Landale was the only player who was able to score freely, while when Mason Peatling – who got the first start of his NBL career in this game – drained a three-pointer halfway through the term, Melbourne owned an eight-point lead, 50-42

The second half of the third term was a slog and with a quarter to play, Melbourne held a 55-48 lead.

A Jessup three was the lone score of the opening two minutes of the final term for either team, but when Baba finished a beautiful reverse lay-up a minute later, United had a six-point lead, 57-51.

From that moment on, it was the Chris Goulding Show. A Goulding jump shot, followed by a triple had John Cain Arena buzzing and when McCarron finished at the rim, Melbourne was up by a game-high 15 points, 66-51, with four minutes to play having gone on a game-changing 11-3 run.

Jessup and Froling hit shots for Illawarra, but it was Goulding who dominated down the stretch with a four-point play after being fouled on a three-pointer and then on the next play he delivered the final dagger with another long-range bomb.

Melbourne ran out 75-65 winners, snapping a four-game losing streak and moving to 11-5 for the season.

Goulding (16 points, 5 assists and 3 rebounds) led Melbourne home, while Landale (19 points and 8 rebounds) kept his team in the game all afternoon. McCarron (7 points, 11 rebounds and 4 assists) and McDaniel (7 points and 9 rebounds) were also important in the win.

Illawarra was led by Froling (11 points and 11 rebounds), Harvey (11 points and 6 rebounds) and Jessup (13 points, 4 steals and 3 assists).

Round 11 tips off on Thursday night when United take on the New Zealand Breakers at Bendigo Stadium at 7:30pm.