Bank of Taiwan broke into the win column for the first time this season with a stunning 89-80 upset over Kinmen Liquor at the Taipei Physical Education College Gymnasium in Tianmu last night to open the second week of play on a high note.
Back-to-back offensive rebounds by the Bankers’ Chien Ming-fu in the final minute of play kept the rallying Distillers from gaining the necessary ball possession to get back into the game.
The 1.63m-tall point guard, who returned to action at the start of this season after hanging up his basketball shoes for three seasons, showed no signs of rustiness as he rose to the occasion to corral the Bankers past the favored Distillers.
Photo: Wang Yi-sung, Taipei Times
Also starring for Bank of Taiwan was team captain Hsu Chih-chiang, whose 20 first-half points gave the previously winless Bankers some much-needed confidence in a hard-fought first half. Hsu would finish the contest with a team high of 29 points and seven rebounds.
Both teams came out firing in a high-scoring first quarter with 21 points apiece, before the Bankers erupted for 28 points to close out the half with a slim 49-48 lead.
The cold Taipei air finally got to the Bankers as they fell behind by as many six points in the third quarter. However, they rediscovered their shooting range in a 26-13 run in the fourth quarter to blow away the Distillers in a monumental win.
Newly signed Taylor King of the US had a decent game statistically for Kinmen Liquor, downing a game-high 31 points for his new club after being released by the Dacin Tigers earlier this week. However, it was not enough to offset his three-for-13 shooting from behind the three-point line in a Kinmen Liquor loss.
In other play yesterday, it was:
‧ Taiwan Beer 78, Leopards 70
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