Rucker: 'Pressure back on Melbourne'

Tasmania looked on the verge of a 2-0 Championship Series deficit in Friday night’s clash against Melbourne United, but such was the way in which the JackJumpers rallied back at MyState Bank Arena that Derek Rucker believes Sunday’s clash has become nothing short of a must-win for United.

The JackJumpers overcame a 15-point deficit mid-way through the third quarter to run out as eventual five-point winners to level the series at 1-1, and Rucker says if United come back to MyState Bank Arena on the wrong side of a 2-1 series tally, Game 4 could mean curtains.

“I was thinking sweep. I was thinking we were going to go back to Melbourne on Sunday and handle their business, and kind of undeservingly the JackJumpers were going to get swept straight out of this series, but it didn’t work like that,” Rucker said on the Coca-Cola Cool Down.

“I’m not sure I’ve seen a series change so suddenly as we’ve seen right here, and the key is if that’s a lasting thing for the JackJumpers.

“They’ve put some doubt in Melbourne United’s head now, I said just five days ago this was Melbourne United’s series, guess what, now Melbourne United are under immense pressure to win Game 3.

“They can’t afford to come down here losing on Sunday, being down 2-1 and trying to steal a Game 4 here in Tasmania, that is not a task anybody wants.

“This is the beauty of basketball. It’s not just a one-off game, you’ve got to continue to deal with the ebbs and the flows and the challenges not only within games, but from game to game.”

Melbourne scored just 14 points in the final term as the top-seeded side wilted under the defensive pressure imparted by the JackJumpers in the late stages of the game.

With each passing missed United shot and successful Tasmania stop, the MyState Bank Arena crowd grew in both noise and confidence, until the stadium became absolutely deafening.

Rucker says in all of his years associated with the NBL, he’s never seen an environment like he experienced during Friday’s game.

“I think the next time the JackJumpers are going to be even more confident on this court, the next time this crowd is going to be even more bonkers,” he said.

“This place, you hear about it but when you actually get down here it’s a different thing. I’ve seen a lot of different venues, but this place is special and I can see why these players and Scott Roth are so enamoured with this community and this venue.”

Game 3 of the Championship Series between Melbourne and Tasmania will tip off at 5:30pm AEDT on Sunday evening, live on ESPN via Kayo.