WWAG Match Recap - Round 4, Game 2 vs NZ Breakers

Melbourne United have come away with a hard-fought victory in The Multicultural Game, overcoming the New Zealand Breakers at home on Sunday.

After an opening minute which saw both teams get stops, Shea Ili got the ball rolling, slicing through the defence for a score at the hoop.

Luke Travers followed this with a tip-in, before feeding Ariel Hukporti for a slam.

A Chris Goulding mid-range jumper and an Ian Clark layup meant United’s first 10 points had come equally from all five of their starters, fitting the theme of The Multicultural Game perfectly.

After Hukporti hit the bench, Jo Lual-Acuil Jr checked in for his first minutes back at John Cain Arena.

The star big-man wasted little time getting involved in the action, muscling his way into the paint for a pair of buckets.

Both sides traded free-throws towards the end of the term, however Ili took it upon himself to bring the crowd to their feet, sinking a buzzer-beating triple to close the period with Melbourne up by 10 points.

Coming out of the first break, Luke Travers continued his aggressive play, getting to the hoop for a pair of tough scores through contact, as well as a slinky post fadeaway.

Shea Ili followed suit, blazing past the Breakers defence for another score before looking to JLA to create opportunities.

Lual-Acuil Jr bullied his way inside for an and-1 bucket, but kept the defence honest when they double-teamed him on the following possession, finding Brad Newley for a layup.

An Ian Clark ankle-breaking three excited the near sell-out crowd, however late turnovers hurt the home side, allowing New Zealand to get on a 12-3 run across the final few minutes, propelling them in front by the slimmest of margins heading into half-time.

While United got going through a Hukporti alley-oop dunk, stopping the Breakers proved difficult for much of the term.

Deep makes from Ian Clark and Chris Goulding kept Melbourne in the hunt of retaking the lead, with the latter tying up the game at 57 with a triple, New Zealand were able to hold the home side off time and time again.

This stayed true until the final seconds of the term, when Shea Ili sank a turn-around jumper to bring United within one before Ian Clark floated in a buzzer-beating shot to hand the home side a 64-63 advantage with one quarter remaining.

Looking to keep up their momentum, Kyle Bowen snagged an offensive rebound and fed Ian Clark for a triple, while Shea Ili swiped the ball away from the Breakers on the next possession, lobbing it up on the fast break for a thunderous Hukporti dunk.

New Zealand hit back, tying up the game at 72, only for JLA to connect on a tough post score to reclaim the energy inside John Cain Arena.

Lual-Acuil Jr kept the highlights coming, swatting Parker Jackson-Cartwright before being rewarded on the other end, scoring through contact for an and-1 bucket to put Melbourne up by eight.

A couple of NZ free-throws got the margin back to six points, however that didn’t last long, with Shea Ili saving a pass from going out of bounds, finding Chris Goulding for his fourth triple of the game.

Wanting to shut the door completely, Ili and Clark put the Breakers on ice, pushing United out to a lead they wouldn’t surrender, ultimately finishing as 9-point victors.

This is Melbourne’s fourth straight victory, and will put them in a strong ladder position come Round 5 when they face the Tasmania Jackjumpers and Illawarra Hawks.