Preliminary-round action in the annual University Basketball Association (UBA) tournament commenced at I-Shou University in Kaohsiung yesterday afternoon with New Taipei City’s Tungnan University edging past Hualien’s National Dong Hwa University in a 79-78 thriller.
Hsiang Peng-an’s free throw off a shooting foul with 0.8 seconds remaining in the contest capped a tremendous rally by Tungnan, who trailed by as many as 16 points in the third quarter to upset Dong Hwa in the opener.
It was a big win for Tungnan as it celebrated its return to Division I play for the first time in four years, putting the once-prominent basketball powerhouse in northern Taiwan back on the map for the first time since 2006.
“Even though we don’t have the size or the speed to be a top-notch club just yet, we make up for it with our determination and will to win,” Hsiang said after the game.
The tallest player on his team stands at a mere 190cm, well short of the norm by today’s standards.
As for Dong Hwa, who led for the first three quarters before resting starter Chen Kwei-hsiang in the fourth quarter, the move proved costly, as Chen’s return to action seemed too little too late for skipper Lin Ju-han.
“Losing two key players from last year’s team will really hurt us this year, but we’ll manage and continue to improve,” Lin said after the game.
He lost Chang Hao-rei and Lee Hao-kang to the SBL and the league’s age limitation for players at 25 respectively at the start of this season.
NATIONAL TAIWAN COLLEGE OF PHYSICAL EDUCATION 82, TAIPEI PHYSICAL EDUCATION COLLEGE 76
Lu Hsueh-leng’s clutch deuce, followed by four straight free throws by other teammates, broke a 76-all tie with less than 30 seconds remaining in the game.
The play put National Taiwan College of Physical Education ahead for the rest of the game as they defeated Taipei Physical Education College in the second game at I-Shou University yesterday.
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