Basketball: Slingers undefeated in Batam after comeback against Macau Black Bears in ABL
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Singapore Slingers' Kentrell Barkley squaring up against Macau Black Bear's Jenning Leung at the Asean Basketball League Invitational on Sunday.
PHOTO: SINGAPORE SLINGERS
SINGAPORE - The Singapore Slingers are two for two in Batam, after another deja vu encounter on Sunday at the Asean Basketball League (ABL) Invitational.
They were again forced to mount a comeback against their rivals, this time against Macau Black Bears in an 88-81 win.
Just like their Batam opener against the Saigon Heat on Friday, when they trailed 80-71 with six minutes to go, their second game at the Hi-Test Arena against the Black Bears was another see-saw battle.
The Singapore side struggled with their scoring from the get-go. They converted just two out of 10 attempts in the opening five minutes as their opponents outscored them 10-4, before closing the first quarter 20-19 ahead.
But American import Kentrell Barkley put the Slingers ahead three minutes into the second quarter by converting an offensive rebound.
But they could not pull away as the Black Bears’ Isaiah Wade and De Angelo Hamilton dominated the boards and finished strongly in the paint.
With less than three minutes left in the quarter, Slingers forward Mah Jun Hao made two three-pointers in back-to-back plays and they closed the half 45-40 in the lead.
But the tide turned in the third quarter as some sharp-shooting from outside the circle saw the Macau team edging ahead 66-64.
The point-for-point battle continued into the final period, until a jumpshot by Larry Liew gave the Slingers a nine-point lead with less than two minutes left.
Black Bears’ coach Charles du Brais mapped a three-point play for Jenning Leung in the final seconds, but the latter’s attempt missed the target.
That allowed the Slingers’ Xavier Alexander to run out the remaining 18 seconds on the clock.
Slingers’ top scorer Barkley had a double-double with 22 points and 11 rebounds, while Alexander and Chanceler Gettys scored 20 points apiece.
Despite their slow start, Slingers coach Neo Beng Siang praised the team’s defensive effort, but noted that there is much room for improvement.
He said: “In the last six minutes, we were good on the defensive end and stopped them from getting easy baskets.
“We are definitely happy with the win but overall, we are not satisfied. We need to keep running the floor and pushing the ball rather than just walking the ball up.”
Barkley, 26, said: “Moving forward, I think we have to improve our team defence and eliminate silly mistakes.”
Local player Kelvin Lim, who came off the bench for seven points and four rebounds in 21 minutes, credited the coaching staff for reading the opponents’ play and coming up with effective defensive formations.
Singapore Slingers’ Kelvin Lim (centre) in action at the 2023 Asean Basketball League Invitational on Sunday.
PHOTO: SINGAPORE SLINGERS
The 26-year-old guard added: “I’m glad I managed to help the team by doing the dirty work such as crashing the board and running the floor hard.”
The Slingers have now improved to a 4-2 win-loss record and will be hoping for a repeat of their 84-82 win when they face NS Matrix Malaysia again on Monday.
