Tseng Wen-ding scored 23 points, Chen Chih-chung added another 12 and the Yulon Dinos topped the Dacin Tigers 69-61 at the National Taiwan College of Physical Education in Taichung on Saturday night to remain undefeated with a 5-0 record in the Super Basketball League.
A slow start by the Tigers that netted them just three points through the first four minutes of play helped Yulon to a 12-point advantage early in the game. But the Cats would promptly regroup and reduce the deficit to eight by the end of the first quarter.
Led by the strong play of top scorer Tien Lei, Dacin opened the second quarter with an 8-0 run, only to see the Dinos respond with a 10-0 run of their own to take a 36-24 lead into halftime.
PHOTO: LIAO YAO-TUNG, TAIPEI TIMES
Another rally by the Tigers, featuring three long three-pointers by guard Chang Chih-fong, brought them to within three of the top-ranked Dinos by the end of the third quarter and they eventually tied the game early in the fourth. However, the victory would ultimately belong to Yulon as Chen Chih-chung drained a pair of clutch shots from the perimeter to take to game away from the Cats late in the contest.
Poor shooting from the field by the Tigers against the two-three zone defense of the Dinos during the first half (five-for-27) dug a hole too deep for them to get out of even though they nearly pulled it off with a strong third quarter.
Taiwan Beer 87, Pure Youth 85
Pure Youth Construction nearly pulled off a huge upset against hot-favorites Taiwan Beer in the second game on Saturday, but they squandered a 10 point lead in the final five minutes of the game to eventually lose by a deuce 87-85.
Playing without their two top scorers -- James Mao and Jien Jia-hong -- because of injuries, the Builders shocked Taiwan Beer with outstanding second and third quarters in which they outscored the defending champions by a convincing 47-32 margin to take a 61-58 lead heading into the final quarter.
That was when Taiwan Beer's Lin "the Beast" Chih-jeh and newcomer Yang Jing-min (acquired from the Bank of Taiwan this season) decided to take matters into their own hands as the two Amis Tribe warriors combined for 20 of their team's 29 fourth-quarter points to avoid what would have been an embarrassing loss to a short-handed Pure Youth squad.
Saturday's other Super Basketball League result:
* Numen 71, Leopards 59
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