Melbourne United are one win away from NBL glory after Matthew Dellavedova inspired a 83-77 defeat of Illawarra in game three of the championship series.
To make matters worse for the Hawks, star import Trey Kell suffered a knee injury in the final minutes as his side went 2-1 down in the best-of-five series.
Without his back-court partner Shea Ili (concussion), Dellavedova (16 points, 11 assists, 0 turnovers) was the difference between the two sides in a tense fourth quarter in Wollongong on Sunday.
His efforts have put United in the box seat to end the Hawks’ hopes of a fairytale win when the series moves to Melbourne for game four on Wednesday.
Illawarra entered the period on a 14-0 run inspired by import Darius Days (11 points, four rebounds) and looked primed to ride momentum to a series lead before a vocal crowd.
With Dellavedova marshalling the perimeter in Ili’s absence, United kept the NBL’s best offensive team only 10 fourth-quarter points after they trailed by 10 early in the fourth.
When he landed a fadeaway shot with four minutes to play, United were back ahead, and edged further in front when he ducked around Kell for a lay-up in the paint.
NBA champion Dellavedova was also key to unlocking Jack White, who had failed to put up a shot in United’s game-two loss but was pivotal on Sunday.
White, a former NBA player, set the tone for United’s 8-0 start by hitting a three-pointer only seconds after tip-off.
White (20 points) went on to land two ally-oops from Dellavedova’s game-playing in the third quarter and finished as the game’s highest scorer.
Kell is in major doubt for the fourth game of the series after slipping over as he attempted to manoeuvre around Dellavedova on the attack with two minutes to play.
He was substituted out of the game and did not return, hobbling up the tunnel in clear frustration.
Kell was named in the All-NBL First Team for a brilliant first season at the Hawks and would be a significant loss as Illawarra fight to confirm a second championship banner.
