The Hsinchu JKO Lioneers on Saturday edged out defending champions the Taipei Fubon Braves in a 102-101 comeback win to clinch Game 1 of the P.League+ finals.
The Lioneers, down 67-50 at halftime, fought back in the third quarter to take the lead 82-81, after guard Oscar Kao intercepted a pass, which teammate Nick Faust shot for a three-pointer with 1 minute, 46 seconds left.
Backed by a raucous sell-out home crowd of 7,200 fans at Hsinchu County Stadium, the Lioneers never looked back as they tallied a 35-17 run over the Braves to walk into the last quarter with an 85-84 lead.
Photo: CNA
The sides were tied at 101 apiece after Braves center Ihor Zaytsev landed a three-pointer with less than seven seconds remaining.
However, in the final two seconds, Lioneers forward Chu Yun-hao sank a free-throw after he was fouled. The Braves called a time-out, but were unable to score.
The Braves last year won the league’s inaugural season, defeating the Formosa Taishin Dreamers in finals cut short by COVID-19.
At a post-game news conference, Lioneers head coach Greg Lin said his players struggled early to overcome the Braves playoff experience.
“There were some problems in our defense, but during halftime, we talked about our strategy in the locker room. We calmed our players and motivated them,” Lin said.
The team performed much better in the second half, limiting the Braves’ scoring, Lin said.
The finals continue today at Hsinchu County Stadium, before moving to Taipei Heping Basketball Gymnasium for Game 3 on Thursday.
Inter on Sunday were given a letoff when they snatched a late 1-1 derby draw with AC Milan, while league leaders SSC Napoli were held by a late goal at AS Roma. Reigning champions Inter remain three points behind Napoli, who looked to be heading five clear as they led in Rome until Angelino volleyed in a stunning leveler in the first minute of stoppage-time. Angelino’s strike gave even more significance to Stefan de Vrij’s last-gasp equalizer at the San Siro. The defender forced home Nicola Zalewski’s knockdown just as it looked like Tijjani Reijnders’ opener would be enough for Milan. “I can
The Washington Capitals and Winnipeg Jets on Saturday did not disappoint in a thrilling midseason matchup in front of a fired-up sellout crowd of more than 18,500 fans. The top two teams in the NHL delivered with a combined nine goals, including the 877th of Alex Ovechkin’s career to put him 18 back of breaking Wayne Gretzky’s record. That tied the score, the Jets pulled it out in overtime and just about everyone involved got their money’s worth out of the 5-4 game. “We knew how we were both sitting in the standings and both having real good years,” Winnipeg coach Scott
BACK-TO-BACK: The League One club, which is owned by stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, is sparing no expense to clinch promotion to the Championship Hollywood endings are pricey, even in England’s third division. In pursuit of their third straight promotion, Wrexham AFC splashed some cash at League One rival Reading to secure the services of striker Sam Smith. The Welsh club owned by actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney confirmed the signing of the 26-year-old Smith on Friday. He is one of the top scorers in the third division. The transfer fee was not disclosed, but British media widely reported it to be about ￡2 million (US$2.48 million) — not extravagant, but a hefty price at this level and it would be about the same figure that
Less than a week after splashing out a world-record fee for Naomi Girma, Chelsea has spent big again to bring England midfielder Keira Walsh back to the English Women’s Super League. Walsh left European champions Barcelona after more than two years to join Chelsea for a reported ￡400,000 (US$496,000) on Friday. Walsh was the world’s most expensive player for two years after moving to Barcelona from Manchester City for a reported ￡400,000 in 2022. That status now belongs to Girma, the US defender who cost Chelsea a reported ￡900,000 to sign from the San Diego Wave. Still, it means 27-year-old Walsh — a technically
RSS