It's not even finished yet, but the opening season of the Super Basketball League has already proved one thing -- it's tough at the bottom.
With the Yulon Dinos (11-0) and the red-hot Sina Lions (on a 7-0 unbeaten streak) tearing up the top of the table, the rest of the division is having a difficult time trying to cling on to their coat tails.
But in a league that is clearly divided into two, the BCC Mars and the Dacin Tigers are the teams that have the best chance of any kind of post-season play outside of the top two.
After starting the season with a bang (4-2), the BCC Mars fell behind after injuries took their toll and prevented coach Chung Chih-mong (
The team's overall success hinges on the health of point guard Yen Hsin-shu (
Yen's effectiveness in penetrating the defense should also lead to some easy baskets down below for Mars' big men when he is not sinking three-pointers.
As much as the Mars need a healthy Yen, their dependence on him pales in comparison to the Tigers' reliance on all-star forward Tien Lei (
Tien is the only player in the league with a double-double average (22.4 points per game and 11.1 rebounds per game), something that should draw him double coverage for the remainder of the season.
The two sub-par games experienced by Taiwan Beer's Lin "The Monster" Chih-jeh (
Without Lin's extra 12 points, the Beer men are winless in their last three contests, which is why coach Fu Ming-ren (傅明仁) must quickly find a way to increase the offensive output from his frontcourt players -- Liao Wei-cheng (廖偉成) and Pan Ren-deh (潘仁德).
Inconsistency has been the No. 1 concern for Jeoutai Elephant skipper Liu Hua-lin (劉華林) in the first half of the season as his team mixed in eight losses with two big wins over the Tigers and Taiwan Beer to climb off the bottom of the league.
"There is no doubt that the Elephants can play with anyone when they have their `A' game on," one senior league official said on condition of anonymity. "They definitely have all the key factors for a great team in shooter Yang Yu-ming (
The Elephants need to control the tempo of the game and maintain their offensive flow. They currently lead the league in turnovers committed with 204, 25 more than the next in line.
Most of the turnovers have come as the result of rushing the game too much. Once the team manages to control the tempo of the game, the offensive flow should follow naturally.
At 2-8, Bank of Taiwan finds itself with the most room for improvement.
On defense, the financial wizards actually deserve applause for yielding fewer points (77.1 on average) than the Mars (79.1) and Taiwan Beer (78.4). It is their last-placed scoring offense (70.4 on average) that has kept coach Wei Chen-ming (韋陳明) awake at night.
Their physical style of play is evident in the league-high 41.9 rebounds per game figure, however, crashing the boards alone will not get the job done in this league.
In order to sustain an offense that has no big name stars, Bank of Taiwan must adapt to a scrappy style of play to keep it from being blown out early.
Getting the ball inside to muscle man Chu Yung-hung (
Santiago Castro on Tuesday had an immediate impact off the bench as he scored the goal to send Bologna into the Coppa Italia semi-finals for the first time in 26 years. Bologna won 1-0 against last year’s runners-up, Atalanta BC, and are to play either holders Juventus or Empoli in the final four. Juventus are to host Empoli in their quarter-final on Feb. 26. The last time Bologna reached the semi-finals was in 1999, when they lost 4-2 to ACF Fiorentina. There were chances for both sides in a high-tempo match in Bergamo, but it was Bologna who broke the deadlock 10 minutes from
The former interpreter for baseball star Shohei Ohtani on Thursday was sentenced to nearly five years in prison for bank and tax fraud after he stole nearly US$17 million from the Los Angeles Dodgers player’s bank account. Ippei Mizuhara, who was supposed to bridge the gap between the Japanese athlete and his English-speaking teammates and fans, was sentenced in federal court in Santa Ana to four years and nine months after pleading guilty last year. He was ordered to pay US$18 million in restitution, with nearly US$17 million going to Ohtani and the remainder to the US Internal Revenue Service. He was
The 40-year-old LeBron James on Thursday became the oldest player to score 40 points in an NBA game, putting up a season-high 42 in the Los Angeles Lakers’ 120-112 victory over the Golden State Warriors. James passed the record held by Michael Jordan, his idol and the only other NBA player to score 40 after his 40th birthday. “I’m old, that’s my take,” James said when asked about his latest achievement. “I need a glass of wine and some sleep, that’s what I think.” Jordan did it for the Washington Wizards just three days after turning 40 in February 2003. James is 38
SPEEDSKATER: Her bronze medal ended Taiwan’s run at the Asian Winter Games without a medal since the nation first participated in the second iteration in 1990 Speedskater Chen Ying-chu yesterday made history as the first athlete representing Taiwan to secure a medal at the Asian Winter Games. Competing at the HIC Speedskating Oval in Harbin, China, Chen clocked 10.510 seconds in the women’s 100m event, finishing third behind South Koreans Lee Na-hyum and Kim Min-sun, who posted times of 10.501 and 10.505 seconds respectively. Her bronze medal ended Taiwan’s drought at the Asian Winter Games since the nation first participated in the second iteration in 1990. This year’s Games mark Chen’s debut at the event. Previously excelling in roller speedskating, she won six medals at world championships before transitioning