Delly praises twin towers of JLA and Hukporti

Melbourne United star Matthew Dellavedova has praised the work of teammates Jo Lual-Acuil Jr and Ariel Hukporti coming off the side’s fourth consecutive victory.

On the road against the Tasmania JackJumpers, the pair gave United 30 points and 14 rebounds combined, while drawing six fouls and shooting the ball at nearly 70%.

Delly lauded the big men, who he says have been a massive part of Melbourne’s success in NBL22.

“They’re huge pieces to this team on both ends.

“They both have different strengths. Jo has his three-point shot, and when teams close out, can really put the ball on the floor and attack the rim, as well as go to work in the post.

“Ariel is really finding his feet and getting comfortable… he’s providing a lot of energy off the bench and changing the tempo and momentum of the game when he’s on the floor.”

Perhaps the biggest impact the pair have brought to the defending champs has come on the defensive end.

United have been historically good at limiting their opponents so far in NBL22, having held the opposition under 80 points for five of their six games, and under 70 for three of those.

Knowing that one of JLA or Big A will be behind him protecting the rim has been a big part of this defensive effort according to Delly, as it allows he and Melbourne’s other guards to be aggressive at the point of attack.

“Our defense has been great so far… but I think we’re only going to get better.

“A lot of it starts with having Jo and Ariel behind us as guards… It allows us to be aggressive on defense and know that if our man gets into the lane, we have those big boys behind us to protect the rim.

“We’re building that defensive chemistry and they’ve been doing a great job of talking and switching.”

To watch Delly, Jo and Ariel, tune in to Melbourne United’s next game, a road matchup with the Illawarra Hawks, live on 10Peach, 10Play, Kayo Freebies and ESPN on Sunday, January 9 at 1pm AEDT.