Semi-Final Game Three Preview: Phoenix v United

Opponent: Melbourne United

Where: Qudos Bank Arena, Sydney

When: Tuesday, June 15 – 7.30pm AEST

Broadcast: ESPN, SBS Viceland, SBS On Demand, Twitch, NBL TV

It all comes down to this.

In the highest stakes Throwdown in the heated rivalry’s short history, South East Melbourne Phoenix and Melbourne United will fight it out on Tuesday night at Qudos Bank Arena for a spot in the NBL Grand Final.

The Phoenix produced a stunning turnaround in Game Two on Sunday, storming home with a 24-9 fourth quarter to set up a highly anticipated decider.

Mitch Creek, Keifer Sykes and Yanni Wetzell scored a combined 72 points in the win and will be giving United fans a sleepless night ahead of Game Three.

“Now for both of us, it’s backs against the wall. The pressure is on both of us now,” Wetzell said.

“We’ve got to come out with that same mentality like we just got slapped by 20 points again because we came out firing, we came out aggressive, and our energy and effort was at an all-time high.

“That’s how we need to treat game three and we’ve got to expect it from them too now because they’re going back to the drawing board, figure out how to better themselves from Game Two.

“It’s going to be a dog fight.”

It was yet another chapter of a wild season for the Phoenix, who have rebounded from shattering defeats all year to keep their title aspirations alive.

A win would propel the Phoenix to their first NBL Grand Final series.

SQUAD

Dane Pineau (knee) has been ruled out for the season.

The remainder of the squad is available.

SIMON MITCHELL:

“Now it’s our job as staff and as a playing group to maintain that attitude (shown in Game Two).

“United are a tremendous basketball team. They have a lot of talent, a lot of gifted athletes, and they’ll come back twice as hard.

“We’ve got to make sure we can sustain the energy we had (in Game Two).”

PLAYER TO WATCH

Where to start?

Game Two saw a number of heroes stand up to keep the Phoenix’s season alive.

Keifer Sykes kept them in the contest throughout its entirety, Yanni Wetzell was inspiring against star big Jock Landale, and Mitch Creek willed his side over the line in the last quarter.

In the context of the series, the matchup between Landale and Wetzell has been the most pivotal thus far.

In Game One, Landale dominated with 26 points before Wetzell hit back with 20 of his own in Game Two. Both men have placed their direct opponent in foul trouble in their strong performances, forcing the other coach to flip magnets and ultimately delivering a win.

Wetzell will need to be big again in Game Three for the Phoenix to qualify for the Grand Final.

OPPOSITION REPORT

Melbourne United looked like an unbeatable outfit in Game One but were made to work much harder for their buckets in Game Two.

After shooting 56 per cent from the field in the first contest, United were held to a 40 per cent strike rate in a dour affair as the Phoenix brought the heat on the defensive end.

Simon Mitchell’s men threw more double teams at Jock Landale, limiting his rhythm and forcing him into making more decisions with the ball. It resulted in just 13 minutes of playing time for five points as he dealt with foul trouble all game.

Chris Goulding was again below his best with 14 points on 5/16 shooting while backcourt partner Mitch McCarron went scoreless on five attempts.

On the other hand, Scotty Hopson was incredible once again with 19 points off the bench. The import has hit six triples on just eight attempts over the two games and leads his team in scoring in the series.

HISTORY VS. OPPOSITION

Head-to-Head Record:

Phoenix 4 United 7

NBL21 Finals:

United def Phoenix 96-78

Phoenix def United 90-79

NBL21:

United def Phoenix 96-90

Phoenix def United 97-92

United def Phoenix 80-60

United def Phoenix 82-93

Phoenix def United 94-83

NBL20:

Phoenix def United 91-88

United def Phoenix 110-98

United def Phoenix 96-95

United def Phoenix 109-90

Sam Bunn for Phoenix Media (14/06/2021)