Match Report: Wildcats vs United Rnd18 NBL26

The Perth Wildcats fell just short in a low-scoring battle against Melbourne United, going down 74–73 in the dying seconds at RAC Arena.

With Chris Goulding marking game 500 and a crowd near capacity despite the Perth Scorchers playing their final on the same day, the stage was set. The Wildcats also came in chasing a sixth straight win and the opening quarter looked exactly like a team that expected to keep rolling.

Perth burst out of the gates behind Jo Lual-Acuil Jr, who ripped through Melbourne early and scored nine points in the first term. Ben Henshall and Dontae Russo-Nance set the defensive tone with steals and pressure that disrupted United’s spacing and ball movement. The Wildcats owned the quarter and took a 24–12 lead into the first break with RAC Arena loud from the outset.

Melbourne responded immediately in the second. They slowed the game down, tightened the paint and began chipping away at the margin. Three minutes into the term the lead was down to three at 25–22, and by halfway the scores were level at 27–27.

One of the defining sequences of the half belonged to Dylan Windler. He drilled a deep step-back three over Goulding, then came straight down the floor and produced a block at the other end to lift the building. United answered through Finn Delany, who threw down a one-handed slam late in the term, but Kristian Doolittle closed the half with a burst of scoring. His late three ignited the crowd again as Perth carried a narrow lead into the main break.

The third quarter opened as a grind. Both teams were slow to find offensive rhythm, with possessions turning into half-court battles. David Okwera gave Perth energy and impact through the middle stretch, while Doolittle continued to influence the game at both ends. The Wildcats took a slim advantage into three-quarter time, still only two points in it.

The fourth became the kind of finish this rivalry produces. The teams traded baskets early, then Melbourne briefly moved in front for the first time since the opening stages. Lead changes followed. Henshall and Lual-Acuil Jr stood up with big plays as the game tightened, and Doolittle delivered a major moment from the corner with a three that steadied Perth when the contest was teetering.

At 65–65 halfway through the term, the game reset. Elijah Pepper hit a timely basket to nudge Perth in front, then Lual-Acuil Jr went to work inside to extend the lead to four at 69–65. With three minutes left, Melbourne used a timeout to settle before the final push.

The closing stages were frantic. Goulding missed a three, Melbourne grabbed the offensive rebound, and Milton Doyle punished Perth with a triple to cut it to two. Finn Delany’s free throws then drew United level, and Melbourne found the final edge in the last moments as the finish turned on a couple of late whistles that went United’s way.

The result left the Red Army flat after the final calls and the one-point loss, with the Wildcats forced to settle for a 74–73 defeat in a game that had everything from the opening surge to the last-shot finish.