Sunday April 22, 2012
Dragons end seven-game losing streak by beating Saigon
By KNG ZHENG GUAN
KUALA LUMPUR: Westports Malaysia Dragons finally snapped a dreadful seven-match losing streak by beating Saigon Heat 95-75 at the Maba Stadium yesterday.
The Dragons had started the Asean Basketball League (ABL) season so brightly but lost their way following a demoralising defeat to the Heat last month.
Then star centre Brian Williams suffered a knee injury and his absence was sorely felt as the Dragons lost one game after another.
But with the imposing 2.08m Williams back in action following a month long layoff, the Dragons were back at their offensive best.
They took a 25-14 lead in the first quarter and ended the first half leading 59-40 as the Dragons were hot on their shooting, converting a total of 11 out of 18 from their 3-point attempts.
The Vietnamese outfit mounted a comeback in the third quarter with Jonathan Jones scoring a game high 31 points and grabbing 17 rebounds but the huge lead in the first half was too much to overcome as the Dragons eventually ran away with the win.
Dragons power forward Tiras Wade led the scoring with 25 points and 11 rebounds while Williams marked his comeback with 18 points and 16 rebounds, his 11th double double of the season.
Shooting guard Patrick Cabahug and veteran Nic Belasco were also on top of their game, contributing 17 and 12 points respectively with Cabahug hitting five from five from the three point line.
The Dragons move back to third place and it is a major confident booster ahead of their clash with the Bangkok Cobras next Wednesday at the Chulalongkorn University, Thailand.
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