Preview: Melbourne v SE Melbourne (Round 6)

When: 4pm (AEDT), Sunday 6 November, 2022
Where: John Cain Arena, Melbourne
Broadcast: 10 Peach; 10 Play; ESPN; Kayo; Foxtel; Sky NZ

Who won the last time?

Melbourne 90 (Goulding 20, White 14, Lual-Acuil 13) d SE Melbourne 88 (Creek 20, Qi 17, Munford 14) – Round 19, NBL22 at John Cain Arena

The Throwdown rivalry continued to deliver late last season, United charging back from 10 points down in the third term to pinch the win and put South East Melbourne on the playoff precipice. Chris Goulding scored 14 points in 11 minutes to get Melbourne back in the game, then Jo Lual-Acuil made two big buckets in the final minute that proved the difference.

What happened last game?

Games in the tropics are rarely pretty, and things got really ugly for United as they wilted in the Cairns heat on Friday, giving up the fight as they were bullied in a highly-physical grappling match that saw them trail by as many as 40. The Phoenix had no troubles running up the points early against Adelaide, but had to win it in OT on A Ryan Broekhoff four-point play after grinding to a halt and finding no answers for a red-hot Craig Randall.

What’s working?

Interior offence – South East Melbourne have won four-straight with their stars on deck, averaging 95.5ppg at 59 per cent on deuces. During the streak, Alan Williams and Mitch Creek have combined for 90 points inside at 59 per cent, import guards Gary Browne and Trey Kell have gone 20/36 (56%), while big men Zhou Qi and Dane Pineau have been almost flawless finishing o-boards and dump-offs at an 81 per cent clip as SEM have dished 21.5apg to 11.8 turnovers.

Not much – To go from level 2:15 before half-time to down 40 just 18:30 later would have to be one of the most embarrassing performances in Melbourne basketball history. United weren’t hard off a back-to-back and only had two players missing, less than the depleted Taipans. The tale of the tape was United being -15 in the possession game during those 18 humiliating minutes, their effort seemingly still at Tullamarine Airport.

What needs stopping?

Mitch Creek – The news doesn’t get any better for Dean Vickerman and Co, stepping off the plane after Keanu Pinder’s penetration cut them to pieces and now having to defend Creek. Mitch’s past three games have delivered 23ppg on 18/31 shooting inside the arc, to go with 7.3 boards and 3.0 assists. David Okwera’s not yet physical enough, Dave Barlow’s no longer quick enough, it will take a genuine team effort to cover Creek without giving up open looks.

Melbourne’s bombers – In four wins, United have averaged 12.5 triples at 41 per cent, while in five losses that nose dives to 8.8 trifectas at 33 per cent. Chris Goulding hits 3.8 at 42 per cent in Ws, compared to two at 32 per cent in defeat. Rayjon Tucker goes at 38 per cent in wins, 23 per cent in Ls. Xavier Rathan-Mayes lands 44 per cent in triumphs, 33 per cent in losses. Melbourne’s stars are living by the sword, but dying by the sword more often.

Who’s matching up?

Gary Browne v Shea Ili – Browne’s assist numbers, 8.8 per game without a single outing below seven, are staggeringly good. The best full-season average in the 40-minute era is Scott Machado’s 7.5. Browne’s three-point numbers are almost equally as bad, 4/24 after four games. Can Ili and Co find a way to make Browne prove his jumper, without giving him the space he needs to get into the lane and create for others? And can Gary get back to the mid-30s perimeter percentage that trademarked of his stints in Europe and Puerto Rico?

Trey Kell v Xavier Rathan-Mayes – Kell’s smooth shot-making was much talked about in the off-season, but he’s making a serious impact at the defensive end to be the Phoenix’s leading plus-minus man despite shooting blanks. Of course, he found range late last week, with 20 points on 8/10 shooting in the final quarter and overtime, after making just 15/47 up until that point. XRM has shown he too loves the big assignments at both ends of the floor, and he’ll be looking to bounce back from an eight-point, 3/10 stinker in Cairns.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">?? ?????? ?? ???????! ?? <a href="https://twitter.com/trey_kell?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@trey_kell</a> <br><br>? <a href="https://twitter.com/10PeachAu?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@10PeachAU</a> ?? <a href="https://twitter.com/kayosports?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@kayosports</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/ESPNAusNZ?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ESPNAusNZ</a> <a href="https://t.co/hqNVZaycSx">pic.twitter.com/hqNVZaycSx</a></p>&mdash; South East Melbourne Phoenix (@SEMelbPhoenix) <a href="https://twitter.com/SEMelbPhoenix/status/1586614852285788160?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 30, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Who’s saying what?

Chris Goulding’s passion was obvious in the post-game press conference in Cairns.

“They played harder than us, they hustled harder than us, they got all the one per cent balls, they came up with loose balls, they got o-boards, they were just so much better than us tonight,” he said.

It wasn’t just effort, it was execution and attention to scout that was sorely lacking as they capitulated as the game wore on.

“We were getting scored on at will, not scoring enough at the other end, taking some questionable shots, turning the ball over. So how was it out there? Not fun,” he said.

“That can happen in games for little periods but we've got to be able to snap out of it and we didn’t snap out of it at all. We had way too many bad things happen with way too many of our senior guys on the court.”

It left Dean Vickerman scratching his head.

“I could see our energy levels wavering, we did some things that just weren’t winning habits, that’s what I'm so mad about with this group,” he said.

“We took some steps forward with the Perth game with the way we played and the way we shared the basketball, the way we played defence, the commitment we had, but we just waver right now.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Kuol has those sneaky hops ??<br><br>Watch <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBL23?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBL23</a> live on ESPN via Kayo Sports and Foxtel ? <a href="https://t.co/iSgKwxlAeK">pic.twitter.com/iSgKwxlAeK</a></p>&mdash; The NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1588466125272031232?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 4, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

“We saw that in the third quarter where we couldn’t get a stop, we couldn’t get a rebound and that game blew out very quickly in the way they kept coming downhill and making shots or getting to the foul line.

“Anytime they did miss they were coming up with second possessions so we were looking for all kinds of alternatives. Do we play zone? What do we do? But through that period they were just too good.”

Now, after the 2300km trek back, United must produce something far superior in order to compete with the red-hot Phoenix.

“I certainly let them know the areas that weren’t acceptable, understanding that we do go back and the Throwdown is a special part of this club,” Vickerman said.

“We know it’s going to be a packed house and we just can’t see any of those behaviours and actions we saw today in that third quarter.

“They’re unacceptable and if we turn up and do that we’re going to have a long night. But we know when we do it the right way we give ourselves every chance to win.”

South East Melbourne have learned how to win very quickly with their stars back in the line-up.

“These guys have clicked a little quicker than I would have anticipated on the fly, because we still haven’t had a lot of training sessions together,” Simon Mitchell said.

“It’s a testament to the IQ of these guys, and just the willingness to sacrifice their personal game for their teammates, and it’s a good vibe down at our club.”

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Double ? from Browne and Kell getting us back the lead ?<br><br>? <a href="https://twitter.com/10PeachAu?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@10PeachAU</a> ?? <a href="https://twitter.com/kayosports?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@kayosports</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/ESPNAusNZ?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ESPNAusNZ</a> <a href="https://t.co/v3ZWGQ535E">pic.twitter.com/v3ZWGQ535E</a></p>&mdash; South East Melbourne Phoenix (@SEMelbPhoenix) <a href="https://twitter.com/SEMelbPhoenix/status/1586608060529020928?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 30, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

NBL23 has been filled with teams bouncing back strong from disappointing defeats, so Mitchell is mindful of a wounded cross-town foe who will be throwing out some unconventional line-ups without Mason Peatling and Jordan Caroline.

“I think they’ll definitely go with smaller lineups,” Mitchell said.

“Obviously Barlow at the five creates a different match-up for us, you’ve got Brad Newley at the floor and you bring that speed onto the floor as well.

“If you want to cross-match Barlow and put the four on him and the five on Newley, Newley’s going to blow by guys, so huge match-up problems for both sides.

“We've got the big guys and they’ve got the mobile guys and the shooters and we've got the guys who play closer to the basket.

“I think both teams will have to be creative with it, we might see some zone, may see some cross-matches.”

Some might question the Phoenix mindset heading into the first Throwdown of the season, where they will be without Zhou Qi, having burped up double-figure leads in four of their past five meetings with Melbourne.

However, with their past three outings producing wins by one point, one point and in overtime, Mitchell believes his group have buried the late-game ghosts of season past, and he can’t wait to show a sell-out Melbourne Park crowd.

“Everything’s different. There’s no lag from last year into this team, there’s no scars that we’re carrying, we’re a new group and our expectations are high,” he said.

“It’s always exciting to play Melbourne in Melbourne, just from a greater standpoint, seeing basketball in the state, after a couple of lean years through COVID it’s just great to see all these people back in the stands.”