2013 ASEAN Basketball League Roundup: March 13-15, 2013

The Indonesia Warriors stayed on top of the heap after the first ever ASEAN Basketball League Hoops Fest, while the San Miguel Beermen and the Westports Malaysia Dragons, armed with contrasting wins, remained in the top half of the leaderboard.

The Dragons went 2-0 this past week, beating the Singapore Slingers and the Saigon Heat, both quite convincingly. The Malaysian club ran roughshod over the Slingers, 75-56, thanks mainly to their sublime import duo of Sammy Monroe and Gavin Edwards, who combined for 43 points and 22 rebounds. Patrick Cabahug also broke the double-digit barrier with 10 points. The Slingers were plagued by atrocious shooting from the field (35%) and the stripe (52%). The Dragons’ second win came at the expense of the Heat, who served as hosts to the 2013 Hoops Fest. Local ace Shee Fai-Loh and Filipino import Moala Tautaa paired up for 22 points to help Malaysia move up to solo third. Edwards also did well with 25 points and 11 rebounds, while replacement import Marcus Hubbard registered 14 markers and 9 boards.

In the opening game of the Hoops Fest, Indonesia beat Thailand to tighten its grip on first place. Mario Wuysang led the way with 20 points, while Chris Daniels and Steven Thomas paired up for 30 markers. Thomas also pulled down 15 rebounds. Despite not enjoying the services of Fil-American Stanley Pringle, the Warriors have shown great resolve and remain the frontrunner to win the ABL crown. Should they succeed, it would be the first time a team would win the title in succession.

Of course, the team tagged to give the Indons a lot of trouble is their opponent from the 2012 Finals, the San Miguel Beermen. The Filipino squad also won this past weekend, beating the Slingers anew thanks to the continued brilliance of Chris Banchero. The Fil-Foreigner poured in 19 points to lead SMB to its seventh win in ten games. The frontline trio of Brian Williams, Asi Taulava, and Justin Williams was also solid, contributing a total of 33 points and 30 rebounds. Singapore, which dropped its sixth game already, was paced by Rashaad Singleton’s 16 markers.

Justin Williams debuted for the San Miguel Beermen
in Hoops Fest 2013.

Game Recaps:

WESTPORTS MALAYSIA DRAGONS over JOBSTREET.COM SINGAPORE SLINGERS, 75-56

The Westports Malaysia Dragons overcame a slow start to rout the JobStreet.com Singapore Slingers 75-56 at MABA Stadium, Malaysia this afternoon.

Sammy Monroe led all scoring with 29 points while Gavin Edwards recorded a double-double with 14 points and 14 rebounds. Patrick Cabahug chipped in 14 points but unfortunately he also suffered an ankle injury midway through the fourth quarter after stepping on Slingers' Ng Han Bin’s foot. 

The Dragons missed their first ten attempts at the start of the game until Sammy Monroe made a lay-up with 6:01 left in the first quarter. The Slingers took an early 11-7 lead on a jumpshot from Jun Cabatu and a left handed hook shot from Rashad Jones-Jennings.

Guga, who has been struggling in his last two games, came in late in the first quarter and made an immediate impact. The Dragons captain made a bank shot and a pair of three-point shots to help the Dragons grab a 17-16 lead at the end of the first quarter.

Monroe and Edwards teammed up in the second quarter to spark a 14-2 run for the Dragons. Monroe's jumpshot and dunk capped off the run which gave the Dragons a 31-20 lead with 4:02 left before halftime.

The Slingers were able to get back within 6 points early in the third quarter behind Don Dulay who was on fire coming out of the locker room. Dulay scored on a pull-up jumper and a lay-up that shaved the Dragons' lead to 41-35 with 6:11 left in the third quarter. Then Wu Qingde made a corner jumpshot that cut the Slingers' deficit further to 43-39 with 3:31 left in the third.

With the Slingers getting closer, the Dragons made a quick 7-0 run to close the third quarter. Cabahug, who had been struggling with his shot, made a step back jumper and a three point shot as he stretched the Dragons lead to 50-39 at the end of the third quarter.

Melton showed off his leaping ability early in the fourth as he stole the ball from Mitchell Folkoff and finished it off with a reverse jam which got the crowd at MABA erupting. Melton's dunk was followed by a three-point shot by Monroe which gave the Dragons a 61-41 lead with 7:33 left before the final buzzer. The Slingers were only able to get as close as 18 points for the rest of the game. With this win, the Dragons are now at .500 with 5 wins and 5 losses.

Turnovers hurt the Slingers very badly in this game as they finished with 28 turnovers. "Turnovers killed us today. We need to clean this up as whole," said Slingers' head coach Neo Beng Siang.

Slingers' new center Rashaad Singleton had a decent debut with the Slingers. Singleton, who's in for the injured Kyle Jeffers, arrived late Friday night and was only able to get one practice in with the team. "Rashaad is still not adjusted with the weather in South East Asia and he's still jetlagged," said Coach Neo on Singleton who finished with 11 points and 13 rebounds plus 4 block shots.

Jennings led the Slingers with 17 points and 16 rebounds but he also committed 10 turnovers. Dulay added a season-high 12 points for the Slingers who now have a record of 4 wins and 5 losses.

Gavin Edwards and Rashaad Jones-Jennings fight
for the rebound.

Sammy Monroe launches into the air for a slam!

INDONESIA WARRIORS over CHANG THAILAND SLAMMERS, 74-67

Timely stops from the Indonesia Warriors down the stretch and a lay-up from Jerick Canada helped the Warriors grab a 74-67 win in the ABL Hoops Fest Saigon 2013 opener.

Mario Wuysang led the Warriors with 20 points followed by Chris Daniels with 18 points. Steven Thomas recorded his eight double-double this season with 12 points and 15 rebounds for the Warriors who now have a record of 8 wins and 3 losses.

The Warriors came out of the locker room firing after halftime as they made a 9-0 run capped off by a pair of free throws from John Smith and a field goal from Wuysang, giving the Warriors a 45-33 lead with 8:03 left in the third quarter.

In response, the Slammers managed their own 9-0 run to end the third quarter. Froilan Baguion made a shot and a lay-up from Pairach Sekteera capped off the run to tie the game at 52 going into the final quarter.

  

The game was tight until the final buzzer. After the Warriors went up by 6 on a shot from Wuysang, Baguion responded right away with a 3-point shot and Dasom made a shot under the rim to cut the Warriors lead to 66-65 with 2:40 left in the game. Unfortunately, Baguion had to leave the game with 1:36 left.

After fouling out, Baguion was hit with a technical foul with 52 seconds left after arguing with a call from the bench with a referee. Wuysang converted one free throw which was enough to secure the Warriors win.

Baguion was short off a triple double after finishing with 13 points, 11 assists Two Slammers local players, Dasom and Sekteera, contributed 10 points each. Charles and Brannon were limited to only 9 points each.

Chris Charles goes up for the floater.

Chris Daniels pulls up from deep!

SAN MIGUEL BEERMEN over JOBSTREET.COM SINGAPORE SLINGERS, 73-53

The JobStreet.com Singapore Slingers faced the San Miguel Beermen in the second match-up for the ABL Hoops Fest Saigon 2013.

The Slingers kept it close through the first three quarters, but in the end, the unrelenting Beermen pulled away for a 73-53 win.  Neither team had a good showing from beyond the arch, with the Beermen shooting 15 percent from three to 13 percent for the Slingers.  But the Beermen’s strong paint presence on both sides of the court proved too much for the Slingers in the end.  San Miguel’s Chris Banchero led all scorers with 19 points, while Slinger’s newcomer, Rashaad Singleton, scored a team high 16 points for Singapore.  This game also marked the return from injury of Brian Williams, who turned out an efficient 15 points on 9 shots from the field.

The Beermen pulled away first after an 8-2 run that earned them the 14 to 6 lead in the first five minutes of the game having made six of 9 shot attempts from the field. Slingers fought their way back into the game, getting to within five points with two minutes remaining in the quarter and trailed by just four points heading into the second quarter at 14 to 17.

Then a basket by Desmond Oh at the 6:28 point of the second quarter brought the Slingers within just one at 21-22. Punctuated by a Desmond Oh three pointer, the Slingers managed to keep it close for the remainder of the period, closing out the half trailing the Beermen 33 to 36.

Brian Williams got the second half rolling with a putback layup, as the Beermen started the third quarter on a 6-0 run and opened up a 9 point lead.  Not to be deterred, the Slingers fought back with a healthy diet of free throws, eventually pulling to within three points.  The Slingers didn’t score a field goal until five minutes into the period, breaking their drought with a powerful two-handed Singleton dunk.  An acrobatic Chris Banchero layup put the Beermen up 47-41 with two minutes to go, and the period ended with the Beermen leading the Slingers 49-45. 

The fourth quarter belonged to the Beermen.  After keeping it close through three, the Slingers failed to match the physical play of the Beermen in the fourth.  Ratcheting up the defensive intensity, the Beermen took over in the first three minutes of the final period, jumping out to a 12 point lead.  After a trio of Justin Williams blocks and an emphatic Taulava jam, the game was all but over for the Slingers.  The Beermen finished the game strong, with the final score 73-53 in favor of the Beermen.

Chris Banchero continues to hound defenders.

WESTPORTS MALAYSIA DRAGONS over SAIGON HEAT, 90-69

Westports Malaysia Dragons locked down defense in the second half which helped them secure a 90-69 win over Saigon Heat in the ABL Hoops Fest 2013.

Gavin Edwards led the Dragons with 25 points and 11 rebounds, followed by Dragons' new import Marcus Hubbard with 14 points and 9 rebounds. Loh Shee Fai added 12 points and Moala Tautuaa contributed 10 points for the Dragons who outrebounded the Heat 46-32.

The Heat were not in full strength as their leading scorer Dior Lowhorn had to sit out because he was not fit enough to play. With Lowhorn sitting out, Heat's assistant coach Rob Wainwright took his spot.

Wainwright and the Heat were dominant in the first quarter. Heat's David Palmer opened up the game with a monster jam. Then, Wainwright made back to back three-point shots and Palmer two-handed tip-jam gave the Heat a 22-12 lead at the end of the first quarter.

The Dragons started to find their rhythm in the second quarter. They made a 13-2 run capped off by a dunk and left handed lay-up from Tautuaa to even the score at 32 with 2:43 left before halftime.

The Dragons dominated the second half. A basket from Justin Melton and Loh Shee Fai gave them their first double-digit lead in the game 4:10 left in the third quarter.

   

Midway through the fourth quarter, the Heat had a hard time finding their offense. The Dragons took full advantage to put the Heat away. Dragons' new import Hubbard was determined to show what he can do. Hubbard sparked a dragons 13-0 run where he scored 6 points during the stretch, giving Dragons a 84-60 lead.

Palmer led the Heat with 16 points and 16 rebounds, followed by Jai Reyes with 14 points and 7 assists. Larry Tieu added 11 points and new Heat's new ASEAN import Al Vergara finished with 10 points.  

Moala Tautaa jams it home!

Jai Reyes delivered another
double-digit game for the Heat.

Source: Game recaps were compressed and compiled from AseanBasketballLeague.com.

Images: Images are from AseanBasketballLeague.com.