Melbourne by 20.

Perth are underperforming, even given their poor squad.

Weird upsets do happen, that's the beauty of the NBL, but I'm not holding my breath.

I am a little surprised that other teams aren't giving MU more competition though.

Yes.

Did Wani change his name to Swani?

Brycius Cottinyis

Introduced into the Australian landscape only 4 years ago.

Already a protected species

Have to agree, Norton playing well below the standard at the moment. Needs to settle down as at the moment it looks like he has 0 idea what his role is, pure chaos

Gold.

Wow Cotton and Blanchfield combining for 2 for 13 and Perth still in front.

Were they shooting hoops with Deng Adel last night.

Quality sharp ball movement and aggressive play on the last possession

Need more

Lethius Verticus

Born 40 years ago.

Medical community remains flummoxed about why his 2nd eye has shown no signs of opening

He just missed.

Cotton airball. Yikes.

LOL
Cats weren't even that good today. We just played hard.

Landale wiping the egg off his face as we speak. Lost at home to a team playing 3 SBL players. Yikes

It does feel weird. We win but were ordinary.

Lucky the game wasn't on the line Jesse lol

Jesse has been good for the first 39:59 of most games this season

Melbourne take the L

Never underestimate the Cats.

Not sure why United seemed fixated on shooting a three at the end of the game?

Also Australian open

And Covid

I agree. The nbl cup is a terrible idea. Maybe do it as a short preseason thing but not during the regular season. It's not innovative, it’s stupid

Jervis 4 minutes , 3 fouls lol.

Cats need to find a center asap, it's going to be a long grind for mooney

Cotton incredible again, what a clutch player. Literally had either Baba or McDaniel hanging off of him off the pick, nails it consistently. Mooney was very impressive again and great to see Wagstaff nailing the triples when United doubled, hard to beat that play. Thought Blanchfield was very good also.

Very sloppy performance from United. McCarron really struggled to run the sets, not enough ball into Landale in the block. They went away from the dribble handoff, not sure why? Hopson was very poor, agreed that he's suited to the iso plays, but in reality most aggressive slashers are the same. He needs to slow it down, get some picks and make better decisions.

You all know we're one Australian Citizenship away from becoming a juggernaut this season.

It was a weird experience being there - it wasn't a "united home game:' experience - as it is meant to be a neutral court. It was still enjoyable but lacked the home game atmosphere.

Hope Money will be ok for out next game.

GO UNTIED - they will bounce back!

Feeling good about this season

Missing CG and Ili. Hopson missed 2 open looks to take the lead on the last possession, Perth got some crucial calls down the stretch too (eg Cotton and Blanchfield both scoring after pushing off their opponent, Landale denied 2 shots despite being fouled on a tip in)

Plenty of upside for United

Perth is a well oiled machine but unlikely to figure in top 4 unless they upgrade their roster (now that SEM has Broekhoff)

Cotton was absolutely clutch but it's off putting watching his theatrics. Watch the replay of the 3 he hit with 50 seconds left. Unnatural leg kick. Had the commentators fooled into thinking he got fouled (not me, I spotted it the first time). If a flop is penalised, why isn't that?

Haha LV, you should be feeling good about the season. Most expensive team in NBL history, fake cup just to get you more home games than anyone else.
Anything less than a championship is a failure.

Haha not as expensive as Sydney last year

Love the cup criticism, Melbourne is the bball and sporting capital, always has been

[Your team is stacked, ]

When Sam McDaniel's playing big minutes no, we're not stacked at the moment

Piss weak copouts by LV after a close loss. What a massive shock!

[Piss weak copouts]

LOL! Sorry?

What copouts?

United was due a loss and were lucky they hadn't lost one already, I said that on here weeks ago, they weren't playing like a team who would remain undefeated for too long. No surprises at all about today's result.

Hopson remains at this level and United is absolutely beatable, and won't deserve the $2 favouritism bestowed upon them

Melbourne were due for a loss plus they were without cg and Ili, and mccarron goes down at the end plus hopson misses 2 good looks at the end so no need to panic for them on the record side of things and nothing to get overly pleased about for all the anti vics on this thread. Injuries mounting up is a concern however so will have to see how they handle that.

For all the stooges complaining about Melbourne being the sporting capital but only referencing the nbl, you do realise that Melbourne is the home to the afl (the biggest and most popular sport in aus), the aus open, plus having just about every other sport too besides rugby being very prominent in the state of Victoria. And since Melbourne is the capital it's only natural it hosts these sporting events. You don’t have to like and yes it can be annoying at times over the chest beating of Victorians claiming how great Vic and Melbourne is, and I too as a Victorian find it annoying but understand for the most they’re not wrong.

LV

Your team is stacked regardless of CG

To complain about lack of talent would be like Bill Gates complaining about lack of money.

We would be happy to take Landale off your hands! Or McCarron. Or Hopson. Or Baba. Or even Barlow.

[LV is complaining about Cotton getting superstar treatment on a play that the refs didn't even reward him? Huh?]

Many flops go unrewarded too. Cottons kick was as bad as any flop I've seen. Should be illegal.

[
Your team is stacked regardless of CG]

If CG and Ili were done for the year instead of coming back in 3 weeks, I'd suggest SEM, Sydney and Hawks would become top 3 favourites.

Alternatively if United never had CG and Ili on their roster at all, would they have been Championship favourites at any stage? No.

Perth played 3 SBL level guts decent minutes lol. How United lost that on their own court with a stacked team is concerning. Basically beaten by cotton and Mooney.

I actually thought the reffing was good for both games yesterday. I guess people will look for excuses though.

[Are you comparing teams on paper?]

Just saying, if you take CG and Ili off Utd roster altogether, several teams are more "stacked"

" I'm not adding Ili to the discussion because he's not much of a player."

I'm just going to disregard your comments Anonymous - as you clearly don't much much basketball

"If Goulding got penalised for every time he drove into a defender, literally head first, and then flung his head back, he would never see the second half of any game."

Please show us some footage of this.

Anytime a defender gets anywhere near Cotton - he flops around like a dying fish - but I guess this is what Perth have always done - Redhage, Wagstaff - these 2 were especially good at instigating contact then flailing around like they had just been shot

Calling Melbourne the sporting capital is not the same as calling it titletown.

It is the sporting capital. Nowhere else hosts and supports sport at Melbourne's level. That's just a fact. And that reputation is international, not just within Australia.
If you're an aussie and you love & value sport (which I would assume applies to most people that post here) then IMO it's something to be proud of, even if you don't live in Melbourne.
Melbourne setting the bar high is good for everyone else too.

LOL! Sorry?

What copouts?

Agree Melbourne is not just the sporting capital of Australia but is also the home of basketball in Australia too, always has been.

If anyone disagrees with that go and have a look at where all the Aussies that have played in the NBA were born, about 80% have come from Melbourne.

Even in their depleted state they still out-talent the Cats, and were playing at home.
Bryce didn't even have one of his better games (by his own standards I mean. He was still the best player on the court)
United just got outsmarted and outworked. Which is one of the worse ways to lose. I very rarely experience that as a Wildcats fan, but as a West Coast Eagles fan I know the feeling well.

[. I'm not adding Ili to the discussion because he's not much of a player.]

HAHAHA Hoops forum, the place for hot takes

[Dude. Come on. Your first reaction to the loss was to cherry pick a few things you felt went against you, and completely fail to acknowledge the ones that went the other way. It's your trademark.]

Correction- my first reaction was to explain why I'm feeling good about this season despite losing a regular season game, after which we're still multiple games clear on top of the table. Eg much more upside left for United than Perth based on that game

[United just got outsmarted and outworked]

Fair take

I'm happy enough they lost one. Might reduce any creeping complacency after over confident talk of going undefeated

They haven't clicked so far, just solid defense and good depth have helped them win games but they could've easily lost 2 or 3 already. If yesterday results in some soul searching, that's a good thing

[they could've easily lost 2 or 3 already]

I meant before yesterday, so 3 or 4 now

You've been on this forum long enough to know how to quote. What a slow learner you are. This [ ] garbage you use isn't the correct format.

Home of basketball in Australia is Melbourne?

While Victoria might have the strongest representation numbers, key administration offices and a strong reputation for producing excellent international standard players, some people might be surprised where the game first started in Australia.

Where it started is irrelevant the home of basketball in Australia has always been Melbourne and I say that as a proud South Australian.

Ýeah yeah we all acknowledge Melb as the home of basketball.

Just want LV to acknowledge Perth were better on the day.

I'm a Perth fan who still thinks a full strength United team is the championship favorite but call a spade a spade.

As for refereeing calls plenty of "wrong calls" go against BOTH teams LV.

Gutsy win by Perth. Cotton hit some outrageous shots but Hopkins will never get 2 better looks to win a game and he was way off the mark. The more pressure the better Cotton shoots. Have to double him esp if there is a screen. Make somebody else beat you.

Melbourne is the basketball capital of Australia, but not the NBL capital, which is Perth.

LV be more salty bro, you can't.

Take the L that was "due" with some dignity.

Superstars get calls btw.

Whilst enjoying the return to traditional grinding Perth defence, I'll admit to being surprised by the victory.

But not as surprised as some by MU's loss. Yes, they're a good team, and the addition of Landale has made them formidable. But they're not as stacked as many claim.
CG is a big out for them, and without Ili they have no recognised PG.

Hopson is not exactly a top-tier import, and whilst Baba has been a revelation, it's offset by not having a proper 2nd import. Being able to call up Stith is helpful, but he's not NBL quality.

Great to see Perth grind out a win, but especially with the cup format, I don't think those minutes are sustainable. Jesse is a diehard competitor, but we can't keep relying on him for 25 minutes.

Unfortunately D2.0 Perth need to rely on Wagstaff more than they should as Travers isn't ready for the big minutes and Bairstow is a waste of a roster spot.

Absolutely Perth the better team on the day, by a whisker.

Such is life

[What does Ili provide that Melbourne can't easily cover?]

Oh I dunno, Ili's the best defender in our back court. How's that for a start?

0h and the only guy in the team who's played majority of his career as a 1.

Oh and great play down the stretch of last season and opening this season, a level of basketball Sam Short and Sam McDaniel almost certainly won't replicate?

Is that enough?

Ili is close to the best defensive PG in the league though, Majok isn't in that conversation at the PF or C spots.

Huh?

Sorry?

Are we comparing a guy who

- starter from a team who lost last seasons semi finals at the death of game 3, and

- 6th man at the 2019 world cup

With a guy who has barely played the past 2 NBL seasons? (Barely in NZs rotation 2 years ago and last year after Plumlees arrival was playing 3 or 4 minutes a game)?

No-one even mentioned that Steindl was out as well

So how do the points for this work?
They drew one quarter, and Perth won two quarters.
Does the 3rd quarter go to MU for outscoring? Or to Perth for being in front?

And what about for the season, is it just treated as a regular game?

3 points for a win and 1 point for each quarter won. Perth get 5.5 and Melbourne 1.5 as they won a quarter and drew equal in another.

And yes these are all counted as regular season games.

Sydney, SEM and Cairns are joint leaders on 6 points.

"3 points for a win and 1 point for each quarter won. Perth get 5.5 and Melbourne 1.5 as they won a quarter and drew equal in another.

And yes these are all counted as regular season games."

Geezus, they can't even record the stats correctly, now they're playing with mathematical fire.

[Cherry-picked stats, and once again thinking the game is played on paper]

Absolute nonsense

Majok only just NBL standard. Was Perth's 10th man or so last season.

Ili started last year- not the whole season but down the stretch once Vickerman settled on their most balanced lineup, and in the semi finals.

"Is our best back court defender" and plays at a high level- not sure what about those comments is "on paper"?

You dont have to admit Ili's a gun and would play serious minutes for any team in the NBL, if you don't want to. But understand you're in the tiny minority of observers if you don't rate him

[And I doubt he'd recognise thag aside from Perth beating them on the weekend, they were also one uncharacteristic turnover away from beating them a few weeks ago. So it seems like Perth has Melbourne's number this year.]

Perth's done well against UTD this year, no doubt

You probably wouldn't admit UTD had Perth's measure last year though, and it was only some calls going Sydney's way that prevented Perth from meeting UTD in the GF

How many did he start once Perth had a half decent big?

How many minutes was he playing in the playoffs?

Majok hasn't been a "major part" of anyone's rotation for 3 or 4 years.

Correction- this started when some anon said "I'm not adding Ili to the discussion because he's not much of a player"

If he's not a player, what does that make Majok Majok? Ili's a damn sight better player than Majok.

Comparing Majok Majok to Ili is ridiculous.

Furthermore, Jervis just turned 34, not 39. He's not that old, only had one year off. In his prime he was a much better player than Majok Majok. Right now you'd rather have Majok, of course. Perth actually got a replacement whereas Ili got injured 2 weeks ago.

[In his prime he was a much better player than Majok Majok. ]

Actually a tad harsh, Majok was pretty decent in his first year with United. Unfortunately he's not improved any since then, and the big man contingent in the league's gotten better.

Only time will tell if the Cup was a Good idea.
Assuming we make it through without a lockdown, and if there is a Good spread of results, then it was probably a good way to get through a stack of games.
The danger is that a team falls flat and loses a bunch of games in a short period.

My big concern for this season is the lack of revenue and how that effects teams, and I don't really see the Cup helping that.

Assuming we make it through without a lockdown, and if there is a Good spread of results, then it was probably a good way to get through a stack of games.

Yeah, no, that's bullshit.

If they were worried about getting the season off, they wouldn't have made it longer.

If they wanted to get games away while they could, they would've hubbed immediately, not waited until February.

NBL cup is a good idea and adds something to the season

However, 36 games is too much. Over saturation. Just like the BBL should've remained at 8 or 10 games instead of moving to 14 a couple of years ago.

This is incorrect. The idea of the NBL Cup is to put games in the bank quickly in case there are border closures/lockdowns etc later on that don't allow the full planned season to be played.

I'll take what ever BS reason the NBL gives for having the Cup this year, right up until they schedule the second half of the year. If SEM and Melbourne have more home games scheduled in its crock of shit.

Also if its announced that the Cup will be in Melbourne every year, also a crock. If you are going to have a cup every year it should be rotated through all capitals including Darwin and Canberra.

They're talking about taking the Cup overseas now. Which very much puts paid to the timezone argument with regard to Perth.

And of course SEM and Melbourne will have more home games after the Cup. They will have 14 non-Cup home games, as will every other club.

Except that every other team isn't having 7 HOME cup games in front of their home crowds. If these games didn't count towards regular season I'd have no issues with them getting more games in Melbourne but these are counting, so why should they get 7 more home games than everyone else?

A few differences actually
1) it was a regular season hub not a cup
2) it is the WNBL
3) most states were locked down to each other at the time.

If anyone can give me a valid reason that doesn't include the wanky 'Melbourne is the sporting capital' why 2 teams should get 7 more home games than every other team im happy to listen.

And as I've said if the cup wasn't counted towards regular season I wouldn't care.