The Dacin Tigers accomplished a mission almost impossible by tripping up top-ranked Pure Youth Construction in overtime for a final score of 101-99 at the Taipei Municipal Gymnasium last night to nip a three-game slide.
The win not only ended the Builders’ record-setting 15-game win streak, but was also a much-needed confidence booster for the Tigers as they get set for the upcoming post-season, which will very likely begin with a series against Pure Youth.
Leading the way for the Cats was team icon Tien Lei, whose buzzer-beating three-pointer with 0.4 seconds remaining in regulation time capped a valiant seven-point comeback in the final two minutes of the fourth to send the game into an extra session. Tien ended with a season-high 24 points to lead all scorers.
“[The loss] is actually good for us with the postseason approaching, because it pointed out our shortcomings,” Pure Youth head coach Hsu Jin-tseh said.
Leading by three with 17.2 seconds remaining in the game, the Builders had a chance to put the game away on a pair of free-throw attempts by James Mao, after the Tigers had committed a foul to freeze the clock. However, the normally sure-handed shooter missed both shots at the charity stripe.
Luxgens 101, Kinmen Liquor 82
The Yulon Luxgens also took care of business against Kinmen Liquor in Taipei earlier yesterday by scoring 60 points in the second half to prevail.
Chou Shih-yuan and Yang Tseh-yi took turns filling in for an injured Chen Chih-chung at the point guard position by restricting their combined turnovers to four to bail out the four-time champs in a game they could not afford to lose.
The game turned into a close fight in the first half as the Distillers rode the 15 points by Chu Yi-tsong to claim a 44-41 lead at the half, after downing 25 quick points in the opening quarter.
The Luxgens outscored Kinmen Liquor in a 30-18 run in the third before flying ahead in the final quarter in convincing fashion.
In other play, it was:
‧ Leopards 96, Taiwan Beer 76
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