All set for a classic

Buckle yourselves in, this is going to be a series to remember. 

Melbourne United and Perth, two star-studded squads, two of the biggest big fan bases, two teams with massive expectations.

On one side, Bryce Cotton, on the other, Chris Goulding; two of the biggest stars of the last decade in the NBL. 

United finished higher on the table and took bragging rights in the teams’ three clashes so far this year, but there’s absolutely no doubting the Wildcats’ incredible depth of talent. 

In fact, Derek Rucker says the combination of Cotton, Keanu Pinder, Dylan Windler and Kristian Doolittle is “unbeatable” when they’re on the court. 

It has all the makings of a classic three-game series. 

“You’ve got a really explosive team with the Perth Wildcats and Bryce, but Melbourne United they always get the benefit of the doubt, because not only of their playing roster and the experience they have as a group, but it’s just what Melbourne United’s about,” Rucker said on NBL Now. 

“They know how to win basketball games … they went through that down patch through the season and so many people were saying ‘is this the end of this run?’, well guess what? It wasn’t the end of the run.

“They’re still a championship contender.”

Nevertheless, Rucker says the teams are simply too hard to split across the three games, even though he’s backing Melbourne on their home court in the series opener. 

“Someone asked me this morning who I favour in this series, and I still haven’t formed an opinion. 

“I think this is about as close a series as we’ve had in a number of years.” 

One player absolutely vital to Perth’s hopes, none other than the five-time MVP Cotton.

Stopping Cotton will go a long way towards Melbourne winning the series. 

“You’ve got to double-team in pick and roll situations, you can’t allow easy looks,” he said.

“When he’s got the ball in iso situations, he’s got to see three bodies … one person in front of him and then two guys in the lane. 

“If I’m Dean Vickerman, and Dean Vickerman is one of the best coaches we’ve ever had in the competition, Bryce is getting no good looks at laneways to penetrate. 

“In transition, he’s not getting any good looks from the three. 

“If Dean Vickerman can get his troops to rally around that and execute that, that will help them a lot in trying to win this Series.” 

Asked if Melbourne could be too Bryce Cotton focused, Rucker was steadfast. 

“This is the greatest import of all-time … no, you cannot be too cautious of Bryce Cotton,” he added. 

“I don’t care if Kristian Doolittle is making layup after layup, I’m not letting Bryce Cotton get his flow on, come down here and knock down threes and get everyone else emotionally engaged in the game.

“I’m taking him out 100 per cent, as much as I can.” 

Live coverage of the Melbourne/Perth series starts from 7pm on Thursday night, live on ESPN.