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| ABL (file photo) |
By Dugout Philippines
Filipino-American guard Avery Scharer put up glaring stats as the Malaysia Dragons beat the Saigon Heat, 102-92, in Game 2 of their ABL semifinals series in Ho Chi Minh City.
The Dragons thus took the best-of-three series and will face Hi-Tech Bangkok in the Finals starting Saturday, Malaysia's first championship series appearance.
Scharer, scored 17 points, dished 18 assists, and grabbed 11 rebounds along with five steals for the Dragons, who banked on a strong second half to clinch the series against the Heat.
Malaysia outscored Saigon, 31-15, in the third quarter to turn a 42-50 halftime deficit to a 73-65 lead entering the fourth, silencing the latter's home crowd at the CIS Arena.
The Dragons continued the onslaught and built a 14-4 run to start the final frame to extend the lead to 18, 87-69, with 6:20 left.
The Heat tried to mount a comeback after building a 15-4 rally of their own to come to within seven, 84-91, with 2:52 to go.
But a breakaway dunk by Justin Knox and a follow-up by Moala Tautuaa sealed the win for Malaysia as they rebuilt the double-digit edge and never looked back.
Knox led the Dragons with 29 points, while Tautuaa, who will suit up for Cagayan in the PBA D-League right after the ABL wars, added 16.
Leo Avenido scored a game-high 30 markers for the Heat, who only had four scorers the entire game.
Box Scores:
Malaysia 102- Knox 29, Scharer 17, Eversley 17, Loh 16, Tautuaa 16, Ban Sin 5, Tong 1, Kuek 1
Saigon 92-Avenido 30, Williams 27, Arnold 19, Thompson 16
Quarterscores: 18-24, 42-50, 73-65, 102-92
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