Doyle the hero as United claim Perth thriller

Already still without Shea Ili, Melbourne United lost Tyson Walker early in their crucial game in Perth on Sunday but Milton Doyle came up clutch as he has built his reputation on to deliver the heart stopping 74-73 win over the Wildcats.

The two rivals always save something special for one another and factor in Melbourne captain Chris Goulding was celebrating his 500th NBL appearance and fourth place was on the line, it was always going to deliver.

Melbourne suffered another significant blow early losing starting point guard Walker to a head knock and already without Ili in the back court, Doyle had to step up and he did in spectacular fashion.

He finished with 24 points and eight assists but it was his three-point effort over the top of Jo Lual-Acuil Jr with 30 seconds remaining proved the winner to give Melbourne the one-point lead which they held on to in a frantic finish.

It's a big win for Melbourne not just given the circumstances, but in the context of the season as they improve to 18-10 to stay in fourth and in touch of a top two spot ahead of the Wildcats who are now 16-11 with their five-game winning run coming to an end.

The Wildcats came into the match up on a five-game winning streak to be the form team of the league and they started strongly to be up 24-12 by the end of the first quarter.

The 'Cats did lead by as much as 14 as well and were still on top 40-38 by half-time but Melbourne had worked back into it well with 26 points in that second quarter and got a walk off triple from Doyle to have momentum heading into the locker room.

The third quarter wasn’t anything to write home about with just 12 points apiece but it was a game that felt always destined to go down to the wire and that's what eventuated.

Perth were still five points up with two minutes to play but then Doyle took charge for Melbourne starting with a three-pointer to bring Melbourne back within two.

Finn Delany stepped up for two free throws to then tie scores up before Lual-Acuil Jr pulled down an offensive rebound to score and give Perth the 73-71 lead inside the final minute.

Doyle then brought the ball up, was left isolated on Lual-Acuil Jr and he ended up knocking down the game winning three ball before United secured the win by getting a stop up the other end with Kristian Doolittle missing a three for Perth before Delany pulled down the crucial rebound.

Both teams had tough offensive nights and while Melbourne shot just 36 per cent from the field and 6/24 from deep, they did go 24/31 at the foul line and pulled down 51 rebounds to 40 from Perth.

Jesse Edwards was a massive part of that with 17 rebounds himself to go with 18 points with Delany ending up with 11 points and four boards, and Malith Machar came up big too with seven points and United were +15 in his 11 minutes.

Goulding didn’t have the individual performance he might have hoped in his 500th game with three points on 1/9 shooting, but it would matter little given the result.

The Wildcats did lead for 34:08 of the game including by as much as 14 points but did also struggle offensively with 38 per cent shooting and 4/25 from three-point territory while also leaving points out there going 17/28 at the foul line.

Jo Lual-Acuil Jr finished with 24 points, 11 rebounds and three assists with Kristian Doolittle contributing 19 points and four boards.

However, tensions were running high post-match and during warm ups, both Lual-Acuil Jr and Doolittle had to be separated by teammates when their discussion became heated.

The Wildcats remain at home to host the South East Melbourne Phoenix in a mouth watering Ignite Cup fixture on Wednesday night while United head to Spark Arena to face the New Zealand Breakers on Friday.

HUNGRY JACK'S NBL SEASON 2025/26 – PRIDE ROUND

PERTH WILDCATS 73 (Lual-Acuil Jr 24, Doolittle 19, Henshall 14)

MELBOURNE UNITED 74 (Doyle 24, Edwards 18, Delany 11)

BOX SCORE