United make Throwdown statement

The ominous start to NBL26 from Melbourne United continued in Thursday night's Throwdown as they made a statement beating their crosstown rivals the South East Melbourne Phoenix 103-83.

Phoenix part-owner Nick Kyrgios was among the sold-out crowd at John Cain Arena on Thursday night but left disappointed with his team's first loss of the campaign.

Runners-up the last two seasons, Melbourne (3-0) have already stamped themselves as early title contenders again.

Dean Vickerman's men have posted consecutive wins over Tasmania, New Zealand and the Phoenix despite the absence of veteran sharp-shooter Chris Goulding (quad).

Championship winning guard Milton Doyle has immediately settled into after crossing from the Tasmania JackJumpers and top-scored with 18 points in his first Throwdown.

He knocked down 4/8 from three-point territory to help United improve their overall head-to-head record against their local rivals to 20-9.

Doyle sparked a 13-0 run at the start of the final period which blew the contest wide open as United flexed their muscle.

Fellow import guard Tyson Walker had 13 points and eight assists, Shea Ili had 10 and seven, while Fabijan Krslovic added 12 points off the bench while nailing both his three-point attempts.

South East Melbourne guard Nathan Sobey (26 points) was dangerous in patches and caught fire during the first and third periods including 12 points in the opening term.

John Brown III (12 points) was the only other Phoenix player in double figures while as a team they shot at just 37 per cent from the field with 9/27 from downtown to go with having 14 turnovers.

Bodies were flying from the opening play, when Ili sent Owen Foxwell into the VIP seats, but the high-intensity contest never got nasty.

Sobey drained 12 first-quarter points for the Phoenix while United made up for eight turnovers with a collective six-of-seven from beyond the arc to get their noses in front.

There were seven lead changes early but Melbourne's buffer ballooned to double figures in the second period.

Sobey, who had 14 points by half-time, reignited with another 12 in the third quarter and the Phoenix briefly reclaimed the lead before United steadied.

Doyle opened the final quarter with his fourth triple, forcing Phoenix coach Josh King to call a timeout.

United took complete control from there and Next Star Dash Daniels (nine points, five rebounds, three assists) sent the home crowd crazy when he nailed a three.

‍HUNGRY JACK'S NBL SEASON 2025/26

MELBOURNE UNITED 103 (Doyle 18, Walker 13, Krslovic 12)

SOUTH EAST MELBOURNE PHOENIX 83 (Sobey 26, Brown III 12, Hunter 9)

BOX SCORE