Point guard Marcus Keene’s 46 points last night led the Yulon Luxgen Dinos to a 99-81 win over Taiwan Beer in the Super Basketball League (SBL) championship, evening up the series and forcing a deciding game tomorrow at the Hao Yu Sports Center in New Taipei City.
Keene had hot hands, draining seven shots from three-point range. Making 12 out of 16, his 46 points set a new league record for individual scoring in a championship game.
Taiwan Beer’s defense could not contain Keene, whose quickness and ball handling put him ahead of the opposition’s big men, Kentrell Barkley and Ihor Zaytsev.
Photo: Lin Cheng-kung, Taipei Times
Taiwan Beer head coach Chou Chun-san said after the game that Keene’s high-scoring exploit was a “performance on the level of Michael Jordan.”
Yulon Dinos head coach Lee Chi-yi added that Keene played more like Allen Iverson, the player’s NBA idol in his early years.
Yulon Dinos center Sim Bhullar — born in Canada to Indian parents — contributed to the victory by grabbing 11 rebounds, a game high for either team.
Taiwan Beer, the league’s top team this season with a 25-7 record, led the series by one game at the beginning of the night, but lacked the hunger to clinch the title.
Led by Keene’s outstanding individual effort, the Yulon Dinos’ teamwork put them ahead 47-40 at halftime.
In the third quarter, the Yulon Dinos outscored their opponents 28 to 15 and extended their lead to 75-55.
The Yulon Dinos continued to rack up long-range shots throughout the final quarter, and although Taiwan Beer rallied, they were unable to close that gap.
Yulon Dinos forward Lu Cheng-ju made good on a three-pointer in the final minutes, killing any hope of a Taiwan Beer comeback and giving the winners momentum as they head into tomorrow’s decisive final game.
Lu chalked up 16 points for the Yulon Dinos, while Taiwanese-American Douglas Creighton chipped in with 12 markers — the other two on the team to reach double figures.
Zaytsev netted 15 points and pulled down 10 rebounds for Taiwan Beer, but the double-double was not enough.
Taiwan Beer’s Barkley, with 13 points and eight rebounds, and Chiang Yu-an, with 10 points and four rebounds, also put in fine performances.
Tallon Griekspoor on Friday stunned top seed Alexander Zverev 4-6, 7-6 (7/5), 7-6 (7/4) in the second round at Indian Wells, avenging a devastating loss to the German at Roland Garros last year. Zverev, the world No. 2 who is heading the field of the prestigious ATP Masters event with No. 1 Jannik Sinner serving a three-month drugs ban, is the first Indian Wells men’s top seed to lose his opening match since Andy Murray in 2017. It was a cherished win for Griekspoor, who had lost five straight matches — including four last year — to the German. That included a five-setter
Donovan Mitchell on Wednesday scored 26 points as the Cleveland Cavaliers punched their ticket to the NBA playoffs with a hard-fought 112-107 victory over the Miami Heat. A seesaw battle in Cleveland saw the Heat threaten to end the Cavs’ 11-game unbeaten streak after opening up a seven-point lead late in the fourth quarter, but the Cavs clawed back the deficit in the closing minutes to seal their 12th straight victory and a place in the post-season. The Cavaliers improved to 52-10, maintaining their stranglehold on the Eastern Conference with 20 games of the regular season remaining. Mitchell was one of six Cleveland
Five-time champion Novak Djokovic on Saturday tumbled out of the Indian Wells ATP Masters, falling in his first match to lucky loser Botic van de Zandschulp as two-time defending champion Carlos Alcaraz advanced. “No excuses for a poor performance,” 24-time Grand Slam champion Djokovic said after 37 unforced errors in a 6-2, 3-6, 6-1 defeat. “It doesn’t feel great when you play this way on the court,” he said. “But congratulations to my opponent — just a bad day in the office, I guess, for me.” Djokovic is just the latest in Van de Zandschulp’s string of superstar victims. He
Manchester United on Thursday settled for a 1-1 draw with Real Sociedad in the first leg of their Europa League round-of-16 tie. United led on Joshua Zirkzee’s goal in the 58th minute, but the hosts equalized 12 minutes later after Bruno Fernandes’ hand ball and Mikel Oyarzabal sent Andre Onana the wrong way from the penalty spot. The Europa League could be a way for United to finish the season with a trophy after crashing out of the FA Cup on Sunday. A spot in the quarter-finals is to be on the line at Old Trafford in the second leg on Thursday next
RSS