After losing back-to-back Asean Basketball League (ABL) Finals, the Singapore Slingers are hoping a pair of potential signings will provide that winning edge. Filipino guard Mikee Reyes and Canadian Ryan Wright (206-C/F-87, college: Oklahoma) have been added to the Slingers' 12-man squad for this month's Merlion Cup, which head coach Neo Beng Siang will use as an audition for the duo. Besides the hosts, the Sept 20-24 invitational tournament at the OCBC Arena features the Shanghai Sharks (China), Adelaide 36ers (Australia), Satria Muda Pertamina (Indonesia), Yulon Luxgen Dinos (Chinese Taipei), Jeonju KCC Egis (South Korea) and NLEX-SCTEX (Philippines). Reyes, 26, averaged 12.1 points and 2.1 assists in his final year at the University of Philippines in 2014 and has played in several semi-professional leagues back home. But it is fellow triallist Wright that Neo is pinning his hopes on. Neo said of the 2.06m centre: "He's quick and athletic, so hopefully this can help our team which plays the running game." With last season's starting centre Justin Howard, 36, out of contract, Neo sees the 30-year-old Wright as an ideal replacement. Wright played in the 2006 National Collegiate Athletic Association finals for the University of California, Los Angeles - albeit in a limited role - and was a starter for Hungarian top division club Szolnoki Olajbanyasz. Neo said: "Our players will feel more confident to have a rim protector." Both Reyes and Wright will arrive in the coming days. Slingers captain Desmond Oh is looking forward to integrating them into the team. He said: "We always do our best to help the imports out, both on and off the court." Added forward Leon Kwek: "After seven seasons, we and Saigon Heat are the only teams that have not won a championship yet. "Hopefully Ryan is going to come in, play at a high level and deliver our first championship." Courtesy of: straitstimes.com
Slingers at their sizzling best as they rout Hong Kong Eastern 101-70 to take 1-0 lead in ABL semi-final - 11 days ago
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What was supposed to be a tight game turned out to be a rout as the Singapore Slingers outclassed Hong Kong Eastern 101-70 in Game 1 of the Asean Basketball League (ABL) play-offs semi-finals on Friday (April 12). Coach Neo Beng Siang was all smiles in front of over 2,000 fans at the OCBC Arena and declared that this was a display of "real basketball". "We did well on both ends. There were a couple of sloppy turnovers, but we committed only nine in the end and that's really good," he said. [read more]
What was supposed to be a tight game turned out to be a rout as the Singapore Slingers outclassed Hong Kong Eastern 101-70 in Game 1 of the Asean Basketball League (ABL) play-offs semi-finals on Friday (April 12). Coach Neo Beng Siang was all smiles in front of over 2,000 fans at the OCBC Arena and declared that this was a display of "real basketball". "We did well on both ends. There were a couple of sloppy turnovers, but we committed only nine in the end and that's really good," he said. "One thing I'm really happy about is that we played together as a team, with 28 assists. That shows we trust one another and, hopefully, we can keep it up going into Game 2. "Everyone contributed and I'm really happy with that. Jerran (Young) got into foul trouble, but the locals stepped up to stick to (Marcus) Elliott (Eastern import) and limited on his scoring." The Slingers raced to a 11-3 lead, aided by sharp shooting and Eastern's sloppy passes. Scoring guard Young picked up three personal fouls, limiting his playing time but local players Ng Han Bin, Delvin Goh and Larry Hua Liew (191-G-93) stepped up in his absence to extend their first-quarter lead to 32-20. Eastern tightened their defence in the second quarter, but were no match for the Slingers' speedy footwork and attacking play as the Slingers surged ahead to lead 61-32 at half-time. The home side maintained their tight defence and momentum for the remaining two quarters to take a 1-0 lead in the best-of-three ABL semi-finals. Eight of the 11 fielded players got on the scoreboard as centre John Fields (205-F/C-88, college: Tennessee) top-scored for the Slingers with 29 points followed by fellow Americans Young and Xavier Alexander (198-G-88, college: S.Nazarene) with 16 points each. The local players shone as well with Goh scoring 15, Liew contributing 11 and Ng adding nine. Goh praised his local teammates for stepping up and said: "I'm definitely happy, but we cannot be satisfied with our performance. "Hong Kong is a totally different venue and Eastern have the crowd behind them so we have to fix things up offensively and defensively and do what we do best there." Eastern's top scorer O'Darien Bassett (189-G-86, college: Troy) had an outing to forget, scoring only nine points. Fellow Americans Elliott and Michael Holyfield (211-C-92, college: SHSU) scored 19 points apiece. While Neo praised his team for a stunning performance, he warned them against getting complacent ahead of the away game next Wednesday. "We can be happy, but we cannot be satisfied. We must be mentally prepared and start the game with this intensity and aggression. We want to finish there." A deciding Game 3, if needed, will be played on April 21 at the OCBC Arena. Courtesy of: straitstimes.com
Singapore Slingers edge out Macau Black Bears 81-79 to make Asean Basketball League semis - 16 days ago
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The tension was palpable as Singapore Slingers owner Wee Siew Kim called it "the longest 3.7 seconds". His team were holding on to a 80-79 lead and possession after Macau Black Bears played the ball out in the decisive Game 3 of the Asean Basketball League (ABL) play-offs quarter-finals on Sunday (April 7). John Fields (205-F/C-88, college: Tennessee) was then fouled by Black Bears' Ryan Watkins (206-C/F-91, college: Boise St., agency: Two Points) with 2.6 seconds remaining and the Slinge... [read more]
The tension was palpable as Singapore Slingers owner Wee Siew Kim called it "the longest 3.7 seconds". His team were holding on to a 80-79 lead and possession after Macau Black Bears played the ball out in the decisive Game 3 of the Asean Basketball League (ABL) play-offs quarter-finals on Sunday (April 7). John Fields (205-F/C-88, college: Tennessee) was then fouled by Black Bears' Ryan Watkins (206-C/F-91, college: Boise St., agency: Two Points) with 2.6 seconds remaining and the Slingers centre made the second free throw to make it 81-79. In a grandstand finish, teammate Jerran Young (198-G-91, college: Wright St.) did just enough to put off Black Bears guard Mikhael McKinney's last-gasp three-point attempt as 1,700 fans at the OCBC Arena celebrated the Slingers' win, which sent them into the ABL semi-finals. They will meet 2016-17 champions Hong Kong Eastern in Game 1 on April 12 (home), Game 2 on April 18 (away), and Game 3 on April 21 (home, if necessary) in a repeat of that season's finals. Slingers coach Beng Siang Neo was not happy with his team's "unacceptable" 19 turnovers, but was relieved they got over the line. He said: "Though we shot badly, the players were determined. They stuck together as a team and did not give up and I'm happy with that." Assistant coach and general manager Michael Johnson added: "It was apt we won with a good piece of defence at the end as we limited a team who averaged more than 100 points per game in regular season." The Slingers got off to a good start and led 26-20 in the first quarter and 44-41 at half-time as Fields impressed with his presence and mid-range shots. The team also did well not to be distracted by Black Bears assistant coach Mathias Fischer's foul-mouthed tirades that went unpunished. With both sides fighting tooth and nail and diving about for precious possession, the scoreline was tight throughout, with neither team holding a double-digit lead. However, things went awry for the hosts in the third quarter as guard Young picked up his fourth personal foul early on and had to be benched as the Black Bears thrived on triples and led 60-59 going into the final period. Neo went for broke as he re-introduced Young, only for Watkins to injure Fields' nose and cause the centre to miss one minute of play. Nerves also set in, as Fields committed an inbound infringement and an unnecessary foul, while the visitors had two shot-clock violations. Fortunately, in the nail-biting finale, Young stepped up with nine points in the last 10 minutes, and Fields returned to finish strong with 23 points and 14 rebounds. Fellow American import Xavier Alexander (198-G-88, college: S.Nazarene) was also key with 24 points, before fouling out with 1min 39sec left. Among the locals, power forward Delvin Goh had nine points and nine rebounds and guard Ng Han Bin chipped in with seven points. The attention now shifts to the best-of-three semi-finals against Eastern, who swept the Slingers 2-0 in regular season and beat them 3-1 in the 2016-17 finals. Alexander said: "We just need to keep getting better. Don't turn over the ball, keep running the floor and playing to our strengths. "I'm definitely confident of making it to the finals. It's been my goal for the last four years and it's still my goal now." Wee hailed the home fans for their vociferous support and said: "Ticket sales started only on Friday and we managed to get about 1,700 fans. They were on their feet and we really felt them behind our team today. We cannot do without them. "I have the belief and confidence that as our local and import players mature together, we can go all the way." Courtesy of: straitstimes.com
Slingers Take Down Dragons in First Leg of ‘Straits Cup' - 2 months ago
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The Singapore Slingers took the first lef of the 'Straits Cup', defeating their long-time ASEAN Basketball League (ABL) rivals Westports Malaysia Dragons on the road, 87-76. The Straits Cup is an annual weekend of two games between the neighboring teams, with the aggregate scores determining the winners. The Dragons won the inaugural edition in 2016, while the Slingers took the last two editions. Chris Eversley (201-F-91, college: Cal Poly - SLO) sparked the Dragons' early success, giving... [read more]
The Singapore Slingers took the first lef of the 'Straits Cup', defeating their long-time ASEAN Basketball League (ABL) rivals Westports Malaysia Dragons on the road, 87-76. The Straits Cup is an annual weekend of two games between the neighboring teams, with the aggregate scores determining the winners. The Dragons won the inaugural edition in 2016, while the Slingers took the last two editions. Chris Eversley (201-F-91, college: Cal Poly - SLO) sparked the Dragons' early success, giving them an early five-point lead midway through the first after hitting a three. Unfortunately, two fouls called on Winston Shephard forced him to the bench early on in the game. The Slingers then took advantage, grabbing the lead for good through a Jerran Young basket late in the first. Despite Shephard picking up his third foul early in the second quarter, the Dragons were relentless in keeping up with the visitors. Singapore maintained their lead at five going into the halftime break, and the second half was just as close as both teams traded scoring runs. Yek Liang Chuan's jumper kept the Dragons in the game, with the deficit only at four early in the fourth quarter. Malaysia had no answer for the import duo of Xavier Alexander (198-G-88, college: S.Nazarene) and John Fields (205-F/C-88, college: Tennessee), who were relentless in attacking the paint and led the Slingers to a 10-2 run, eliminating all hopes of a comeback for the Dragons. The Slingers cruised to the 11 point victory with a John Fields exclamation dunk ensuring the visiting team picked up the victory after their 12 days break. They finished the game with 60 points in the paint as the Dragons struggled to contain the Slingers inside offense. Xavier Alexander led the Slingers with 28 points, 12 rebounds and four assists. The 66 percent free throw shooter went against his season form, going perfect at the line for the night scoring 10 free throws. Fellow import John Fields had an equally impressive night with 28 points and 17 rebounds. Nnanna Egwu (211-F/C-92, college: Illinois)'s season high 26 points and Winston Shephard's double-double effort of22 points and 11 rebounds were not enough for the Dragons. Courtesy of: aseansports.com
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