THE NBL Blitz is underway in Canberra, with the Perth Wildcats claiming a solid eight-point win over Melbourne United when the two sides kicked off the tournament at AIS Arena on Wednesday night.

Following a couple of weeks of exhibition matches, the official preseason tournament began in the nation’s capital last night, offering a proper glimpse at what teams will be bringing ahead of what is promising to be a competitive 2025/26 season.

Both sides were admittedly missing key players in this matchup, with the Wildcats not able to showcase their star recruit in former Melbourne big man Jo Lual-Acuil, while United were missing their backcourt stars in Chris Goulding and Shea Ili.

Although it was a tightly contested matchup, the Wildcats scored the final six points of the match to claim the first-up win and give Perth fans plenty of hope for the upcoming season.

Perth Wildcats (84) def. Melbourne United (78)

It was a strong start to the match for United, who showed what import big man Jesse Edwards is capable of and what he will bring to the frontcourt. He threw down an early dunk to impress the crowd, before off-season recruit Milton Doyle nailed a three-bomb to really get Melbourne going. However, Ben Henshall scored seven first-quarter points for Perth to help the Wildcats to a six-point buffer at the first break.

Henshall continued his strong work in the second frame, with Dylan Windler joining in on the fun as the Wildcats tightened their grip on the match. United simply could not make up any ground in the closing minutes of the first half, and at the main break, the team from out west led by seven points and were showing plenty of promise.

Melbourne remained in the contest throughout the third frame, before Doyle caught fire to finish the penultimate period and drag his side back into contention. The NBL Champion knocked down a three-ball – in a match where long-range shooting was a luxury – and a layup to tie up proceedings at the final change.

The two sides traded blows throughout the fourth quarter, with NBL1 star Elijah Pepper and big man David Okwera chiming in for some big plays late. Doyle and Edwards came alive late for Melbourne again to make it a tied ball game, before the Wildcats went on a 6-0 run at the foul line to cap off proceedings and get the win.

Henshall was the standout for the Wildcats, posting a game-high 16 points on 5/8 shooting from the field to go with his seven rebounds in an exciting showing after recommitting over the off-season, while Windler and Okwera posted 12 points apiece.

Doyle finished with 15 points for Melbourne, the most of any United player as he looks to return to his All-NBL best in new colours, while Edwards cemented himself as a lob-threat with 13 points and nine rebounds and Finn Delany added 12 points and eight boards of his own.

The other match of the evening saw the Adelaide 36ers claim a hefty 21-point win over the reigning champion Illawarra Hawks later in the evening, despite missing key pieces in Bryce Cotton and Montrezl Harrell in ominous signs for opposition teams.

Six players scored double-digits in the points column for the Sixers, including all five starts in a tremendous team performance. It was an exceptional feat given the amount of talent still to come back into the fold.