Ian Clark has played hero in overtime after Bryce Cotton and Chris Goulding waged a brilliant shooting war as Melbourne held off Perth under the stars.
With the John Cain Arena roof wide open, the NBL heavyweights lived up to the bill, the hosts eventually prevailing 109-103 on Saturday night.
Clark (25 points) hit two huge triples and scored 13 overtime points after Goulding (19 points) and Wildcats star Cotton (36 points) had traded blows across 40 minutes.
It was the teams' second overtime clash this season, United improving to 14-3 to stay clear of the Wildcats (9-7) in second.
"We needed more people to step up and ... IC (Clark) made some big plays," United coach Dean Vickerman said before hailing Cotton's performance as a "hell of an effort".
"Gutsy win, a little bit of luck but we probably deserved a little bit of luck."
Cotton was relentless in 45 minutes despite some heavy attention from the United defence and he bobbed up with two big shots to give Perth a 12-point buffer late in the third quarter.
But they froze to begin the fourth and the hosts charged back into the picture.
Luke Travers (20 points, eight rebounds, five assists) made back-to-back shots to draw Melbourne within a bucket of his former team and they edged ahead with seven minutes to go.
Goulding then got open and drilled a triple to make it a seven-point game with four minutes remaining.
But two United turnovers and Cotton's re-emergence with a contested triple made it 91-87 in favour of Perth inside the final minute.
Goulding made a similarly tough triple in reply and Cotton was on target with one of his two free throws to create a two-point buffer.
With 19 seconds on the clock Goulding raced to the rim, his attempt rebounded by teammate Jo Lual-Acuil, who was fouled.
His first free throw bounced twice off the iron before dramatically dropping in and he flushed his second to tie the game with two seconds on the clock.
Cotton couldn't work a miracle and the teams were forced into overtime to decide the winner for the second time this season.
Clark took the lead, creating a five-point buffer with a step-back triple as he scored eight of his team's first 10 overtime points.
He wasn't done though, banking a long triple off the glass to all-but seal the win with one minute to play.
"I get hounded by whoever I play, for me it's just another day at the office," Cotton said of the physicality that left him clutching at his shoulder.
"It don't matter how I feel; everything is about winning and I'm not a moral victory kind of person."
