Matthew Dellavedova gives NBA Championship Series MVP to Illawarra Hawks’ Will Hickey after game five

Matthew Dellavedova has selflessly handed his NBL championship collection MVP trophy to rival participant Will Hickey after the Illawarra guard iced the decisive game-five win over Melbourne United.

Jeering rang out at WIN Leisure Centre when NBL legend Larry Sengstock introduced United guard Dellavedova because the MVP of the collection regardless of United’s 114-104 loss within the winner-take-all decider on Sunday.

Dellavedova had been United’s most constant participant within the best-of-five collection, guiding the group to a game-three win in Wollongong that put them 2-1 forward.

Nevertheless it was energetic guard Hickey who impressed the Hawks to the game-four and game-five wins that sealed the Hawks’ first title since 2001, and second of their 47-year historical past.

On Sunday, Hickey (21 factors, 10 rebounds, eight assists) recorded 12 first-quarter factors to assist Illawarra erase a 10-point deficit and completed simply shy of his first triple-double.

When NBA champion Dellavedova took to the stage to just accept the Sengstock Trophy because the championship collection MVP, the guard instantly paid tribute to Hickey.

“Davo, this belongs to you,” Dellavedova stated, referencing Hickey’s nickname and gesturing with the trophy.

Nonetheless clearly devastated with the loss, Dellavedova walked from the stage and strode into the group among the many Hawks’ championship winners.

Cheers of “Davo” rang out as Dellavedova handed his MVP trophy to former United improvement participant Hickey, who reluctantly accepted it.

Andrew Bogut credited his former Boomers teammate as a “class act” on social media, however stated the voting system wanted to alter because it was revealed the United guard bought three extra votes than Hickey (34-31).

Dellavedova completed sport 5 with 5 factors on 2/6 taking pictures and a team-high seven assists to his title.

United got here out of the blocks quicker within the decider, hitting 4 of their first six makes an attempt from deep and constructing a 10-point lead within the first quarter.

Hickey was inspirational for the Hawks with 12 first-quarter factors after beginning instead of Trey Kell, who shone with 26 factors, 11 rebounds and 7 assists as soon as he returned from the knee harm that rubbed him out of sport 4.

Kell tied the sport at 26 with a bounce shot on the Hawks’ final possession of the primary quarter earlier than serving to his facet to a 12-2 run within the second that put them forward.

Veteran Todd Blanchfield (eight factors, three rebounds) beat the buzzer along with his second three of the quarter to revive a 10-point lead for Illawarra on the half, and the house facet by no means trailed once more.

Preventing to reassert themselves within the contest, United went greater than 5 minutes within the third quarter with out a discipline purpose.

They missed seven consecutive makes an attempt in that point, with star guard Matthew Dellavedova (5 factors, seven assists) additionally uncharacteristically butchering each free-throw makes an attempt.

It didn’t assist United’s trigger that Lee and Clark frolicked on the sidelines with obvious arm accidents within the third quarter.

Chris Goulding (21 factors, three assists) completed as United’s top-scorer, with Shea Ili including 20 on return from a concussion lay-off.

However when Kell raced down court docket for a lay-up that made it a 13-point sport with 70 seconds remaining, the Hawks formally regarded residence.

AAP