Bank of Taiwan rallied from a fourth-quarter deficit with a decisive 12-1 run to pull off a 68-65 win over the Fubon Braves at the Banciao Gymnasium in New Taipei City last night.
The victory not only extended their current winning streak to four, but also put the Financial Wizards within a game of the fourth-placed Yulon Luxgens in the standings with three weeks remaining in the regular season.
Earl Barron’s nine first-quarter points helped the Braves claim a quick 23-20 lead after 10 minutes of play before both teams cooled off in a slower-paced second quarter to close out the first half with Fubon holding a 39-31 lead.
Bank of Taiwan were able to pull within two of the Braves, with Lee Wei-che downing nine of his season-high 16 points in the third, but never managed to take the lead despite several golden opportunities.
That set up a timely 7-2 run in by the Braves to give them a seemingly comfortable 65-58 lead with about five-and-a-half minutes left on the clock.
The diehard Bankers took their game up a notch, with Nevill netting five of his team’s next six to fall within one of the Braves, before Chen Hsuan-hsiang calmly nailed a pair of free throws with under two minutes to play to put his team ahead.
The Braves’ poor shooting down the stretch was the difference in the game as the Bankers held them scoreless for more than five minutes to deny Fubon any chance of a win.
“We really shut the Braves down in the fourth, that was the difference in the game,” Lee said after the game.
Fubon big man Barron had a huge first half with 14 points and 11 rebounds, but ran out of gas in the fourth quarter with several misses from close range, leaving the door open for the Bankers.
Tigers 88, Kinmen Kaoliang 79
The Dacin Tigers bounced back from a devastating defeat against second-place Taiwan Beer on Friday with an 88-79 triumph over Kinmen Kaoliang in the second game in New Taipei City last night to close out their weekend on a high.
Chou Yi-hsiang shook off a recent slump with a team-high 22 points to spearhead a Dacin attack that netted 47 points in the first half. The Tigers led by as many as 17 before allowing the Distillers back in the game midway through the fourth.
Rookie point guard Lu Chi-er also contributed to the Cats’ win by playing his best game of the season with 17 points.
Hired gun Kyle Barone missed his season-high mark by two with 35 points, but failed to knock down the big shots with the game on the line in a losing effort.
MARRED FINAL: As most of Senegalese players walked off the pitch after a controversial decision, some supporters threw objects and attempted to get onto the pitch Senegal on Sunday won the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) as Pape Gueye’s extra-time winner sunk hosts Morocco 1-0 after a chaotic final that saw the eventual champions storm off the pitch late in the game. Brahim Diaz could have won the trophy for Morocco with a controversial spot-kick in the 24th minute of added time at the end of normal time as ugly scenes broke out in the stands. However, Senegal goalkeeper Edouard Mendy easily saved the weak attempted “Panenka” chip by the Real Madrid winger, who was clearly distracted by the long delay that followed the penalty award.
James Harden on Friday scored 31 points and came up big in overtime to help the Los Angeles Clippers erase a double-digit deficit on the way to a 121-117 NBA victory over the Toronto Raptors. Harden scored 16 points in the fourth quarter and overtime as the Clippers pushed their wining steak to five games despite the absence of star Kawhi Leonard with a sprained right ankle. The Clippers trailed by 11 entering the fourth quarter, but Harden drilled a pair of free-throws with 1:24 left in regulation to tie it and after misses from both teams, they went to
Qatar’s Nasser al-Attiyah on Saturday secured his sixth Dakar Rally car title in Saudi Arabia with Luciano Benavides scraping home by two seconds to claim the motorbike title. “We’ve worked very hard since last year. I might not be showing much emotion yet, but it’s there, deep down. We are so happy to win,” al-Attiyah said at the finish. Al-Attiyah, at the wheel of a Dacia, only had to avoid a final day slip-up to top the podium after bringing his career tally of stage wins to 50 on Friday. The 55-year-old, who took clay pigeon shooting bronze at the
Tobias Harris on Monday scored 25 points as the Detroit Pistons held off the Boston Celtics to score a 104-103 victory in their top-of-the-table Eastern Conference showdown. Harris was one of four Detroit players to finish in double figures, with Jalen Duren adding 18 points and point guard Cade Cunningham scoring 16 points with 14 assists. The win sees Detroit extend their lead at the top of the Eastern Conference to 31-10, 5.5 games ahead of second-placed Boston, who fell to 26-16 with the defeat. Jaylen Brown led the Celtics scoring with 32 points and almost snatched victory in the