Taiwan Beer cruised past Bank of Taiwan in a dominating 98-60 at the Kaohsiung Arena last night to open the final weekend of play before the Lunar New Year’s break with a bang.
Byron Allen had a career day at the office for the Brew Crew, as the big man out of the Northwestern State University in Louisiana poured in 15 points in the first half and topped it off with 13 more in the second to help his team end a two-game slide.
Also starring for Taiwan Beer was forward Hung Jia-ming, whose 19 points were second only to Allen’s game-high 28, not to mention his three blocked-shots that surprised the Bankers. The former reserve has made the most of his promotion to the starting lineup by scoring at least 15 points in three of his last five games.
Photo: Chang Chung-yi, Taipei Times
Taiwan Beer held the Bankers to only 13 points in the first quarter to enjoy an 18-13 advantage, with Allen accounting for six points of their 18.
After the Brew Crew managed to get Bank of Taiwan’s Joseph Taylor and Chou Bo-hsun into foul trouble with three fouls apiece in the second quarter, things opened up even more for Allen, who connected on four of his six attempts from inside the paint for nine points to give his team a 38-29 lead at the half.
That was as close as the Bankers got, as Taiwan Beer opened the second half with several mini-runs that added up to a 29-13 scoring differential in the third.
They then piled on 31 more points in the fourth quarter to run away with a landslide victory.
The lone highlight for the Bankers came when they finally shut down their opponents in the final minute of the contest on three different possessions, to keep a very eager Brew Crew from reaching the century mark.
In yesterday’s late game, the Luxgens downed the Leopards 74-64.
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Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter is being criminally investigated by the IRS, and the attorney for his alleged bookmaker said Thursday that the ex-Los Angeles Dodgers employee placed bets on international soccer — but not baseball. The IRS confirmed Thursday that interpreter Ippei Mizuhara and Mathew Bowyer, the alleged illegal bookmaker, are under criminal investigation through the agency’s Los Angeles Field Office. IRS Criminal Investigation spokesperson Scott Villiard said he could not provide additional details. Mizuhara, 39, was fired by the Dodgers on Wednesday following reports from the Los Angeles Times and ESPN about his alleged ties to an illegal bookmaker and debts well
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