Preview: Melbourne vs Illawarra - NBL24 Playoffs, Game 3

Monday, March 11, 2024

Can Melbourne flex its muscles earn a place in the Championship Series, or will Illawarra's fairy tale run continue?

Wednesday, March 13 at 7:30pm AEDT | John Cain Arena

Watch: Live on ESPN via Kayo | International viewership details
Box scores: Download the free NBL App

Game 1
Melbourne United came back from 16 points down in the final term to force overtime and emerge from Game 1 with an overtime victory.

Luke Travers starred down the stretch for United, while Matthew Dellavedova put in a Foot Locker Player of the Game performance that was heralded as his best ever in a United jersey.

Sam Froling dominated the early battle with Jo Lual-Acuil Jr and finished with 26 points for the Hawks. When asked what it was like to take it up to one of the best center’s in the NBL post-game, Froling simply replied “so am I”.

Game 2
An offensive rebound and contested layup from William Hickey in the final second of regulation saw Game 2 also head to overtime, however this time the Hawks saw themselves home to force Game 3.

Gary Clark was a constant presence for the Hawks and looked to have fully shaken off his ankle injury to add 31 points and 16 rebounds, while Tyler Harvey was praised post-game for his poise and shot selection. Hickey was the hero though, with a career-high 18 points and a blanketing defensive performance against his former side.

All of Melbourne’s starters scored in double-figures in the loss, however Chris Goulding hit just two of 10 three-point attempts.

Will Hickey
Game 2 was Davo Hickey’s day, and the former Melbourne and South East Melbourne guard looks to have finally locked in on the talent and potential he has flashed over the course of his four-year NBL career.

He was solid in his role in Game 1, but his contributions in the Game 2 victory go far beyond his impressive box score of 18 points, five rebounds, three assists and three steals. In a team that has an established top three players of Tyler Harvey, Gary Clark and Sam Froling, Hickey was the barometer for his teammates to meet.

He was suffocating and decisive on the defensive end, and he chased every rebound, defensive matchup and loose ball like it was his last.

Starting Hickey at the expense of Justin Robinson and Hyunjung Lee was a bold call by Justin Tatum leading into this series – but it’s paid off in spades.

Hickey is a player who doesn’t have many runs on the board over his NBL career, admittedly. He made just nine appearances in two seasons while representing both teams in the city of Melbourne, and was a bit-part player in the Hawks’ horror NBL23, and still found opportunities hard to come by even in their enduring injury crisis.

He was an absolute star in Game 2, and has likely written himself into Hawks folklore with that performance – and he seems at ease with his immense rise. Following the win, he stated all the pressure is on Melbourne.

Can he back up his career-best performance with another game-defining showing on both ends of the floor?

“I can speak all day about this young man, about the patience and resilience and toughness he has. It’s tough to be as talented as he is and have to wait your turn. I think the patience he has had all season for us came out today and he showed what he can really do ... it’s just a plus to have and I’m really proud of him right now. We wouldn’t be sitting here with smiles on our faces if it wasn’t for this man.” – Justin Tatum on William Hickey following Game 2.

<blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/reel/C4Wrcy3ShMK/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14" style=" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:540px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);"><div style="padding:16px;"> <a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/C4Wrcy3ShMK/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" style=" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;" target="_blank"> <div style=" display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style=" background-color: #F4F4F4; 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Luke Travers
If there’s anything for Luke Travers to take from his first two post-season games as a member of Melbourne United, it’s that he looks capable of taking his talents to the next level, should he be presented with the opportunity.

Travers was immense alongside Matthew Dellavedova in Game 1, made plays when the game was on the line in the fourth quarter, and then broke Hawks hearts by taking the lead in overtime.

Gary Clark may have managed to get off the chain more in Game 2 – and a number of those big plays did come while Travers was defending him – but he showcased his good defensive talent and all-around offensive skillset once again, albeit in a defeat.

If you look at the big matchups across the board heading into Game 3, Travers’ ability to defend any player two through four makes him a potential point of difference. He adds an element of both offensive and defensive versatility that Illawarra just doesn’t have to the same extent on its roster.

He doesn’t need to put up massive scoring numbers to be one of his team’s best players, and Game 2 showed that. Travers finished the game with only 11 points, but he shot 50 per cent, and added seven rebounds, three assists, four steals and two blocks in the type of all-action performance that has become the norm for the 22-year-old.

Can he take his game to another level when it matters most?

“Luke Travers is an NBA player. [He] looked so comfortable in Summer League and his versatility and consistency this season has been outstanding. We forget he’s still 22.” - Peter Hooley following Melbourne’s Game 1 win.

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border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style=" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div></div></div><div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;"><svg width="50px" height="50px" viewBox="0 0 60 60" version="1.1" xmlns="https://www.w3.org/2000/svg" xmlns:xlink="https://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"><g stroke="none" stroke-width="1" fill="none" fill-rule="evenodd"><g transform="translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)" fill="#000000"><g><path d="M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631"></path></g></g></g></svg></div><div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style=" color:#3897f0; 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Jo Lual-Acuil Jr and Ariel Hukporti vs Sam Froling
When all is said and done, regardless of the result, is this the series fans will one day look back on and mark as the moment Sam Froling properly elevated himself into the stratosphere of the new generation of local NBL talent?

Taking on the one-two punch of Jo Lual-Acuil Jr and Ariel Hukporti is a challenge most teams have failed in NBL24, but Froling has risen to a new level in the face of what is likely the strongest center rotation in the competition.

With that being said though, all is certainly not said and done.

Froling took the Game 1 individual battle with Lual-Acuil Jr, and while their Game 2 clash was more even – JLA would likely have be seen as the clear winner had he managed to connect his free throws.

To underestimate Lual-Acuil Jr heading into this crucial do-or-die clash would be ill-advised. He’s a former MVP candidate for a reason, he’s been in NBA calculations for a reason, and he’s one of the competition’s most heralded players for a reason.

If Froling can continue to battle down low and impact both ends of the floor it will go a long way to edging the game in the Hawks’ favour. If Lual-Acuil Jr and/or Hukporti can keep him off the glass and off the scoresheet, call it advantage Melbourne.

Melbourne has won each of its last 12 games following a loss, while the Hawks have lost their last six games at John Cain Arena. The last time United suffered back-to-back defeats was in Round 9 of NBL23, where they endured a five-game losing run.