Holding top-ranked Pure Youth Construction to eight points in the decisive fourth quarter, the Taiwan Mobile Cloud Leopards overcame a double-digit deficit in the second half to pull off an 85-76 win at the Sinjhuang Sport Complex in New Taipei City last night.
The win not only put a stop to the Leopards’ recent two-game slide, but more importantly avoided what would have been a winless three-game weekend following their two-point loss in overtime to the Yulon Luxgens the night before in a game they should have won.
“It is definitely a big and much-needed win for us, given how close we’ve come before,” Leopard head coach Chia Fan said after the game.
Despite being projected as one of the top three teams in the league with a brand-new lineup that rivals the national squad, the Leopards have only a 6-5 record to show, sitting at the No. 3 spot in the latest standings.
The Builders showed no signs of slowing down after their 100-91 win over Taiwan Beer on Saturday by downing 23 and 17 points over the first two quarters respectively to enjoy a 40-34 advantage at the half.
They would up the lead to double-digits by the end of the third before falling apart against a tenacious Leopards defense that held the league-leaders to a season-low eight points in the final quarter, to suffer just their second loss of the season.
Five different players scored in double figures for the Leopards, led by Noel Felix’s game-high 22 points and 14 rebounds.
As for the Builders, a sub-par outing by starting point guard Chen Shih-jeh was the main reason they were unable to maintain their composure and the big lead in a losing cause.
TAIWAN BEER 82, KINMEN LIQUOR 80
Kinmen Liquor surprised Taiwan Beer with an 82-80 win in Sinjhuang yesterday afternoon to pick up just their second win of the season.
Taylor King silenced his critics — for his questionable shot selections in the past — by converting 13 of 22 from the floor with a season-high 36 points to propel the Distillers past the Brew Crew in the battle of the two beverage giants.
Chu Yi-tsong’s clutch basket for the go-ahead deuce, coupled with his strong defensive stand against Taiwan Beer’s Byron Allen on the ensuing possession, was the difference in the game as the underdogs fended off the three-time champs to garner the improbably victory.
LUXGENS 64, TIGERS 68
The Dacin Tigers bounced back from an embarrassing loss to Bank of Taiwan on Saturday with a 68-64 triumph over the Yulon Luxgens in the weekend finale to close out their three-game weekend on a high note.
Chen Tzu-wei’s even dozen in an explosive third quarter that saw Dacin outscored the Luxgens 25-20 gave the Cats just a big enough cushion to hold off a fourth-quarter rally by the Luxgens in a narrow win for the Tigers.
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