United set for decider

MELBOURNE United coach Dean Vickerman believes he has the perfect strategy to lift his side to its maiden NBL championship in Saturday’s game-five grand final series decider.

Vickerman wants to replicate Adelaide’s first-half offensive aggression from game four on Sunday while bottling his own team’s second-half defensive intensity when the two teams meet at Hisense Arena.

The Sixers levelled the gripping series at 2-2 with a 90-81 victory which was a game of two wildly contrasting halves: Adelaide dominating the first half 55-31 before United ran rampant 50-35 after the long interval.

“We go 1-of-15 from the three-point line (in the) first half and they’re shooting 33 free throws,” Vickerman said.

“We’ve got to make sure in those periods we find a way to draw contact and go to the foul line as well to keep the scoreboard ticking over.

“We weren’t good enough at that in the first half. We were a little passive defensively.”

Despite the defeat and regardless of how the decider goes, Vickerman hailed the ongoing series as among the finest in the NBL’s 40-year history.

“It’s been an absolutely amazing series and I’m sure game five is going to be amazing as well,” he said.

“This is my sixth ( grand final as coach or assistant) in the last eight years and this one is right up there.”

“Winning against Cairns (in 2015) on the buzzer was a special moment but the competitive nature, the way this things gone back and forth, the pace it’s been played at, the physicality, it (this) is a pretty special series.”

Adelaide coach Joey Wright maintained his self-imposed media silence when asked about the upcoming decider, continuing to respond to all questions with “I’m not sure”.