The TSG (Taiwan Steel Group) Ghosthawks on Saturday started the new year with a T1 League record high of 132 points, beating a record set last month by the Taiwan Beer Herobears.
The Tainan-based Ghosthawks beat the Taoyuan Leopards 132-113 at Chia Nan University of Pharmacy and Science’s Shao Tsung Gymnasium.
The Taipei-based Herobears scored 117 points against the Taichung Wagor Suns on Dec. 11, which was the highest-scoring game in the league’s inaugural season. Yesterday, the Herobears again beat the Suns 95-88 in Taichung.
Photo courtesy of the T1 League
Ghosthawks center William Artino, who is from the US and was naturalized as Taiwanese two weeks ago, led all scorers, posting a double-double of 41 points, 22 rebounds and eight assists.
Leopards forward Troy Williams, a former NBA player and 2017 NBA D-League Slam Dunk Contest champion, posted 38 points.
Ghosthawks head coach Wu Chih-wei said their defensive strategy of marking key players helped them to rack up the points.
“I think this game was a great game to watch, as we were down in the first half, but we changed our defensive strategy in the second half to heavily guard against Williams and decrease the number of times he had the ball,” Wu said.
The Ghosthawks stepped onto the hardwood in the second half trailing behind the Leopards 67-64, but put pressure on Williams, who scored 27 points in the first half, but only managed to score four in the third quarter and seven in the fourth.
The Ghosthawks’ defensive strategy paid off as they were able to overtake the Leopards and widen the score in the third quarter with a 32-15 run.
Leopards forward Caelan Tiongson picked up 11 points in the fourth quarter, which was answered by Negus Webster-Chan’s 13 points, including four of five from beyond the arc.
Tiongson contributed a double-double of 23 points, 17 rebounds and three assists.
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