Machar locks in Grand Final spot, Newley goes out in NBL1

As NBL1 seasons draw towards their thrilling conclusions across the country, a pair of United forwards battled it out in their respective conferences.

In the Central Conference, Malith Machar put together a spectacular performance to help Forestville pick up an underdog victory over West Adelaide and lock in their spot in the Grand Final.

The DP filled the statsheet, finishing with 26 points, six rebounds, five assists, three steals and two blocks, while knocking down four triples.

Included in those stats was an assist on Adam Doyle’s game-winning basket with less than 10 seconds remaining.

Machar and the Eagles will now face either West Adelaide or Sturt in the Grand Final in two weeks time.

NBL1 Central - Sunday 30th July:

~West Adelaide 81 def by Forestville 83

Machar: 26 points, six rebounds, five assists, three steals and two blocks in 35 minutes.

Moving to the South Conference, Brad Newley’s Frankston Blues saw their season come to an end at the hand of Diamond Valley.

Despite a strong effort from Newley (17 points on 11 shots), a huge third quarter put the visitors in a position to make a late run and hold on for the upset victory.

The loss brings a close to what was a spectacular first season back in the NBL1 for Newley, with the forward averaging 17.9 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.8 blocks across his 18 games.

NBL1 South - Saturday 29th July:

~Frankston Blues 91 def by Diamond Valley Eagles 95 

Newley: 17 points, seven rebounds, one block and one steal in 31 minutes.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">As the NBL1 seasons draw towards their conclusion across the country, a pair of United forwards battled it out in their respective conferences.<br>Watch Brad Newley and Malith Machar&#39;s highlights below.<br>And read more on their stats here: <a href="https://t.co/Q2TCS2F8mF">https://t.co/Q2TCS2F8mF</a> <a href="https://t.co/AMfJjETp0J">pic.twitter.com/AMfJjETp0J</a></p>&mdash; Melbourne United (@MelbUnited) <a href="https://twitter.com/MelbUnited/status/1685856974880264192?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 31, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>