Melbourne "over" Game 3 defeat

Melbourne United are ready to lay it all on the line in Thursday night’s do-or-die clash with Tasmania, and head coach Dean Vickerman says his side is firmly focused on its next game, despite Sunday’s heartbreaking defeat.

Tasmania led for just over 150 seconds across the entirety of Sunday’s Game 2 clash, and with Melbourne leading by one and possessing the ball, it looked all but set see the game out to victory.

Instead, a turnover from an inbound pass and a near-half court shot from Jack McVeigh elevated Tasmania to victory, and means United must win on Thursday night to keep their season alive.

“Yesterday was an off day, and I think everybody needed that day to gather themselves, get over it and move forward,” Vickerman said. “Every game at home I come home and walk the dog around the block before I do anything, so that was a good start for me – to have a dog that doesn’t care about the result and just gets on with life.

“Watching the game again a couple of times yesterday and with our coaches today, we see the areas that we have to be better and I think that’s give yourself some time to be disappointed about the loss, but we have to come in with a plan about how we move forward.

“I sent some messages to the group about some things we need to be focusing on and the things we can control ... it’s a five-game series for a reason and we’re looking forward to going down there (to Tasmania).

“I can guarantee you ‘flat’ is not a word you can use when you see us play in Game 4. You’re going to see an inspired, passionate team throwing everything they can to go and get this win.”

Aside from McVeigh’s game-winning triple, veteran forward Majok Deng played a key role in pulling Tasmania back into the contest with 15 final-quarter points.

Deng was injected into the game following a severe looking knee injury suffered by center Marcus Lee and caused United’s center duo of Jo Lual-Acuil Jr and Ariel Hukporti issues on the defensive end as, Tasmania elected to utilise a small-ball lineup.

Kyle Bowen was inserted into the game as a small-ball center to try and stop the rot, but Tasmania already had the momentum and took over in the fourth quarter.

Vickerman says he’s hoping Lual-Acuil Jr and Hukporti get back to the dominant form they displayed in Game 1.

“In Game 1 Jo got a lot of stuff from sprinting the floor and taking advantage of his quickness and I’d love to see him, and Ari do that when they’re running with ‘Shili’ (Shea Ili),” Vickerman said.

“We talk about our pace, it’s ‘can you run with Shili, can you run with LT?’

“When those two are out sprinting the lanes, I think they get themselves in great receiver spots to get some easy points.

“When you look back at the game, Deng got going when he was at the four, he had three triples when he was at the four spot, so it’s on the coverage of those guys. 

“We’ve had great opportunities when Deng is in the game with our bigs to make sure they can use their advantage there, so we’ll continue to look at both those lineups.”

Game 4 of the Championship Series between Melbourne and Tasmania will tip off at 7:30pm AEDT on Thursday night, live on ESPN via Kayo.