Hong Kong, Macau keep postseason hopes flickering

c/o EASL

The newcomer teams secured key wins on Wednesday night to bolster their cases to make the EASL Final Four.

Earlier in the evening, Macau capped off its prelims with an 89-78 triumph over Busan KCC Egis, finishing their Group B campaign at 3-3.

The Black Bears were leading 68-66 with six minutes left, before ending the game on a 21-12 run thanks to the efforts of Adonis Thomas and Jenning Leung, as well as from Damian Chong Qui and Samuel Deguara.

Chong Qui would finish with 23 points and eleven assists, while Deguara was a rebound short of a 20/20 performance with 24 points and nineteen boards.

Cady Lalanne impressed in his EASL debut for Busan, matching himself against the Maltese-Italian giant with 27 points and thirteen boards, as well as four assists. Heo Ung added twenty markers in the defeat, which was their fourth in five and effectively eliminated them from postseason contention.

Macau's hopes now rest on the aspirations of the New Taipei Kings and the Meralco Bolts, who will face off on February 12, but before that, those two teams will have separate opposition next week, with NTK facing Busan on the 21st, and the Bolts hosting Ryukyu Golden Kings on the 22nd.

In the other matchup, fellow newcomer Hong Kong Eastern dismantled San Miguel Beermen, 84-74 at the PhilSports Arena, earning a third win over their opposition in the last month.

Chris McLaughlin led the way with fifteen points and seventeen rebounds, extending his double-double streak to five matches.

The visitors took advantage of a strong start, erecting an 11-1 lead and never really looked back, except for a stretch in the fourth period that that managed to reduce the deficit to just seven points at 75-68 with under 3.5 minutes remaining. Unfortunately for the Beermen, they were unable to cut the deficit further, as they remain winless in five outings so far continentally.

Their inability to kick things off well in their matches have been a noticeable trend in their last few matches. San Miguel trailed 22-12 in their previous meeting with Eastern, whilst their matchup last week against Hiroshima saw them trail 30-18 at the end of the first period.

With their third straight victory in Group A, Hong Kong moves to 3-2, with a huge matchup against Taoyuan Pauian Pilots looming on February 5. A win would secure them a spot in the EASL Final Four on their inaugural campaign.