GAME one of the 2023/24 National Basketball League (NBL) Championship Series saw Melbourne United snag an emphatic 23-point win over the Tasmania JackJumpers at John Cain Arena on Sunday afternoon.

After a tight start to the match for the first quarter and a half, United broke away on the eve of half time, and ensured the JackJumpers never returned to striking distance in what was a one-sided contest for a large chunk of the game.

Game two looms on Friday night, this time down in Tassie at MyState Bank Arena, and the hosts have a mountain of work ahead if they are to flip the result and stay in the series.

Ahead of the second clash, Rookie Me Central will be taking a look at each side’s performance in the opening match, and how changes could be made in the coming games.

First up are United, who look in excellent nick to start the series and will have no troubles claiming the ultimate prize if they keep up this sort of form.

Melbourne United

THE OFFENCE

The game broke open in the second quarter, when United was able to keep their offence rolling when Tasmania’s dried up. With so many scoring options, it is hard to stop Melbourne from getting the ball in the hands of a dangerous player on the offensive end.

There are four main ball handlers in Melbourne’s rotation, with at least two on the court at any given time. Any of Matthew Dellavedova, Shea Ili, Ian Clark and Luke Travers can orchestrate an offensive set, with Jo Lual-Acuil owning the paint and Chris Goulding always dangerous on the perimeter. The remaining players in the rotation each have a specific role to play, but these are the big dogs.

With plenty of spacing in most of their lineups, United were not afraid to fire off shots from behind the arc, with Goulding knocking down six three-pointers while Dellavedova and Clark splashed home three each. Even Travers was not hesitating on firing off a shot from behind the arc, despite it being a flaw in his game throughout his young NBL career. Goulding’s ability to make some tough triples in the first half was telling for the rest of the game, as he was seemingly unfazed by the close defensive coverage and still found the bottom of the net.

Melbourne was also proficient in getting to excellent box out positions under the hoop, so the team was more willing to fire off jump shots rather than forcing drives as the likes of Lual-Acuil and Ariel Hukporti were in the box seat to grab the offensive board and generate second chance points. This was demonstrated by a 16-8 offensive rebounding count and played a big part in the result of the match.

With the amount of weapons this team has scoring the ball both inside and outside, it makes them such an intimidating defensive assignment.

THE DEFENCE

United have always been a side that prides themselves on defence, and it delivered again on the big stage on Sunday afternoon.

After conceding 24 points to the JackJumpers in the opening quarter, Tasmania’s offensive sets were suffocated by some outstanding defence from the home side. Tassie’s stars were essentially shut out of the game after the halfway mark of the second quarter, thanks to the efforts of some big names for United.

Ili kept a close eye on Crawford and ensured his shooting struggles continued, with the import guard held to just seven points on 3/13 shooting and simply could not find the space to get going. His partner in crime in Dellavedova had the job of keeping a close eye on Doyle and while he was more damaging than Crawford with 16 points and eight rebounds on 7/13 shooting, it was not the MVP-type performance we had seen in the previous two matches against Perth. The duo also had close checking on the in-form Sean Macdonald, with the reigning NBL Most Improved Player restricted to only six points on 3/11 shooting.

On the wings, Travers forced Jack McVeigh into some really tough shots, and did not give the All-NBL Second Team forward the chance to get going from the field or the free throw line. Melbourne’s impressive youngster conceded just 13 points on 4/11 shooting in an important matchup.

United’s guards like to pick up the opposition in full court, not allowing the likes of Doyle and Crawford to start initiating the offence after collecting the inbound, and it immediately disrupted the JackJumpers. Melbourne’s backcourt also did a tremendous job of going over the screens, fully knowing that Tasmania’s guards are perimeter threats and taking away one of the team’s biggest strengths in a well-scouted performance.

THE PLAYERS

It is hard to look towards any particular players to improve in game two, with three players scoring 18 or more points and four registering at least 11 points. Lual-Acuil was dominant in the paint throughout the first half, while Goulding and Clark were consistent four quarter performers around the perimeter. Ili and Travers left some points on the floor, both shooting under 50 per cent, and could be bigger contributors in game two, but will not necessarily have to lift as Melbourne simply has so many scoring options.

FINISHING TOUCHES

It was a dominant performance from United in game one, who had their way with a rattled JackJumpers side. A 1-0 lead in the series is the perfect start for the championship favourites, but will need to withstand a vocal MyState Bank Arena crowd on Friday night if they wish to replicate this sort of performance.