Melbourne United survived a late scare and snapped their National Basketball League season duck with a 98-87 victory over the Adelaide 36ers on Friday night.Piloted by Tai Wesley (18 points) and Todd Blanchfield (17), Melbourne exploded with a dominant 32-17 second term and led by as many as 24 points late in the third quarter in Adelaide.With skipper Mitch Creek exiting the match with a leg injury sustained in the first quarter and star guard Jerome Randle (20 points) fouling out late, Nathan Sobey provided much-needed spark off the bench for the home side, helping peg the gap back to five points near the death.But they werent able to overhaul those final buckets and slipped to a 1-2 record.United led by one point after a see-sawing opening stanza before blitzing Adelaide in the second, with Blanchfield catching fire from the perimeter and Wesley proving a powerhouse in the paintAfter a tough first half - on the back of sustained shooting ails in the opening round - Chris Goulding finally found his range, while Wesley demonstrated a nice outside stroke to go with his inside game, as Melbourne worked out to 80-56 late in the third.While United fired on all cylinders, Adelaides offence repeatedly spluttered with poor shot options and consistent turnovers proving costly before Sobey and Ferguson did their best to conjure a last-ditch miracle.Five points down inside the final 30 seconds, Daniel Johnson fluffed two late chances to steal the unlikeliest of wins and Melbourne iced it from the stripe through Goulding.Adelaide coach Joey Wright took some heart from the Sixers fierce fourth-quarter fightback even though the damage was already done.Its great that we came back ... we knew if we played like that from the beginning wed be successful. But we didnt.They controlled the tempo in our own gym which was disappointing.Melbourne coach Dean Demopoulos said United must improve their ability to close out opposition fourth-quarter comebacks, after his sides 24-point third-quarter lead was whittled to just five points inside the last minute.Obviously wed like to do better, he saidBasketball is a game of runs and every team is going to get them.We could do a better job of closing that quarter out. Cameron Wake Youth Jersey . - Derek Wolfe says hes finally healthy after suffering a seizure in November that doctors now believe was related to the spinal cord injury he suffered in the preseason. Bob Griese Youth Jersey . The International Olympic Committee released the official list of bid cities on Friday after the deadline for applications had passed. The candidates -- all previously announced in their own countries -- are: Almaty, Kazakhstan; Beijing; Krakow, Poland; Lviv, Ukraine; Oslo, Norway; and Stockholm. http://www.dolphinsrookiestore.com/Dolphins-Mark-Duper-Jersey/ . Laudrup revealed Thursday he was notified of his dismissal in "the briefest of letters which gave no reasons why such hasty and final action was deemed necessary. Minkah Fitzpatrick Jersey . - After leading the Saints to a fourth playoff appearance in five seasons, Drew Brees expressed confidence in the direction of his team and, perhaps more importantly, showed a willingness to listen to contract proposals if the team needs his help getting under the NFLs salary cap. Mark Duper Dolphins Jersey . - Oakland Raiders running back Rashad Jennings was speaking to a group of local high school students earlier this week when the conversation turned to the importance of being prepared when opportunities in life arise. HAMDEN, Conn. -- Anthony Lamb scored 23 points and had eight rebounds while Payton Henson had 19 points to lead Vermont past Quinnipiac 94-70 in the season opener for both teams on Saturday.Trae Bell-Haynes scored 16 points and eight assists and Ernie Duncan added 13 points for the Catamounts who shot 33-for-54 (61.1 percent) from the floor.Duncans 3 with 12:09 left before halftime gave Vermont an 11-10 lead it never surrendered. The Catamounts outscored the Bobcats 32-15 before intermission.Another Dunncan 3 early in the second half pushed the lead to 50-28.dddddddddddd Lamb, Henson, Bell-Haynes, and Duncan combined to shoot 25-for-38 from the floor with Henson converting all eight of his free throws.Reggie Oliver led Quinnipiac with 15 points and Chaise Daniels added 11.With the win, Vermont improved to 8-3 against Quinnipiac in a series dating back to the 1942-43 season. ' ' '