TPBL Round 17 (Regular Season): Kings beat Taipei TM by two after a very close game

What a coincidence that all visitors won their games. Here is the last round review presented by Job Market.

The most exciting game of round 17 in the TPBL ended with only two-point defeat of 6th ranked Mars (8-13) to fifth ranked Kings (11-11) 98-96 in the game for the fifth place. Kings looked well-organized offensively handing out 23 assists. Jamaican-American power forward Femi Olujobi (206-1996, college: DePaul, agency: Slash Sports) orchestrated the victory by scoring 25 points, 9 rebounds and 4 assists. American Austin Daye (209-1988, college: Gonzaga, agency: Slash Sports) contributed with 18 points, 9 rebounds and 7 assists for the winners. Kings' coach John Patrick used an eleven-player rotation in such tough game. Kenyan-South Sudanese power forward Makur Maker (212-2000, college: Howard) answered with a double-double by scoring 48 points (!!!) and 16 rebounds for Taipei TM. Kings have a solid series of three victories in a row. Defending champion maintains fifth place with 11-11 record. Taipei TM lost third consecutive game. They keep the sixth position with 13 games lost. Kings are looking forward to face higher ranked Lioneers (#4) in Hsinchu in the next round and it will be quite challenging to get another victory. Taipei TM's supporters also look forward to an exciting derby game next round, where their team will travel locally in Taipei to the arena Kings.
TPBL top team - Leopards (16-5) had no problems winning another game. This time they crushed seventh ranked Aquas (6-17) in Kaohsiung 101-75. Mali power forward Cheick Diallo (206-1996, college: Kansas) stepped up with a double-double by scoring 24 points, 12 rebounds and 6 assists for the winners and Jin-Wei Gao chipped in 21 points and 6 rebounds. Serbian forward Rade Zagorac (204-1995) responded with 13 points and 8 rebounds. The winner was already known earlier in the game, so both coaches allowed to play the bench players saving starting five for next games. Leopards have a solid series of four victories in a row. Taiwan Beer L. maintains first place with 16-5 record. Kaohsiung A. lost fifth consecutive game. They stay at the bottom position with 17 games lost. Taiwan Beer L. will play against league's second-placed N.Taipei CTBC at home in the next round and it will be for sure the game of the week. Kaohsiung A. will play against Taipei TM (#6) and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
The game in Kaohsiung supposed to be also quite interesting. Third ranked DEA (12-10) played at the court of 7th ranked Aquas (6-17). DEA smashed Aquas 113-84 on Sunday. Marko Todorovic nailed 26 points and 8 rebounds for the winning side. Efe Uwadiae-Odigie came up with a double-double by scoring 18 points and 11 rebounds for Kaohsiung A. in the defeat. Since the result was very predictable, it gave the chance for the coaches to test many bench players which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. N.Taipei CTBC moved-up to second place. Kaohsiung A. lost fifth consecutive game. They stay at the bottom position with 17 games lost. N.Taipei CTBC will meet league's leader Taiwan Beer L. in the next round and it will be for sure the game of the week. Kaohsiung A. will play against Taipei TM (#6) and it may be a tough game between close rivals.

In the last game of round 17 Dreamers beat Taipei TM 104-91.
The most impressive performance of 17th round was 27 points, 20 rebounds and 6 assists by Ben Bentil of Dreamers.



Kaohsiung A. - Taiwan Beer L. 75-101

TPBL top team - Leopards (16-5) had no problems winning another game. This time they crushed seventh ranked Aquas (6-17) in Kaohsiung 101-75. Taiwan Beer L. dominated down low during the game scoring 66 of its points in the paint compared to Aquas's 36. Taiwan Beer L. forced 21 Kaohsiung A. turnovers. Their players were unselfish on offense dishing 24 assists. Mali power forward Cheick Diallo (206-1996, college: Kansas) stepped up with a double-double by scoring 24 points, 12 rebounds and 6 assists for the winners and international point guard Jin-Wei Gao (175-2000) chipped in 21 points and 6 rebounds. Five Leopards players scored in double figures. Serbian forward Rade Zagorac (204-1995) responded with 13 points and 8 rebounds and the former international forward Siao-Jin Wu (190-1995) scored 13 points and 5 rebounds. The winner was already known earlier in the game, so both coaches allowed to play the bench players saving starting five for next games. Leopards have a solid series of four victories in a row. Taiwan Beer L. maintains first place with 16-5 record. Kaohsiung A. lost fifth consecutive game. They stay at the bottom position with 17 games lost. Taiwan Beer L. will play against league's second-placed N.Taipei CTBC at home in the next round and it will be for sure the game of the week. Kaohsiung A. will play against Taipei TM (#6) and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Kaohsiung A.: W.Siao-Jin 13+5reb, R.Zagorac 13+8reb+3ast, K.Krajina 12+2reb+1ast, M.Fotol 10+1reb, U.Efe 8+8reb+1ast, W.Liang-Che 7+3reb+3ast
Taiwan Beer L.: D.Cheick 24+12reb+6ast, J.Gao 21+6reb+1ast, M.Chris 15+4reb, K.Lasan 13+4reb+8ast, S.Lin 13+3reb+1ast, X.Tsao 5+3reb+4ast

Taipei TM - Kings 96-98

The most exciting game of round 17 in the TPBL ended with only two-point defeat of 6th ranked Mars (8-13) to fifth ranked Kings (11-11) 98-96 in the game for the fifth place. Kings looked well-organized offensively handing out 23 assists. Jamaican-American power forward Femi Olujobi (206-1996, college: DePaul, agency: Slash Sports) orchestrated the victory by scoring 25 points, 9 rebounds and 4 assists. American Austin Daye (209-1988, college: Gonzaga, agency: Slash Sports) contributed with 18 points, 9 rebounds and 7 assists for the winners. Five Kings players scored in double figures. Kings' coach John Patrick used an eleven-player rotation in such tough game. Kenyan-South Sudanese power forward Makur Maker (212-2000, college: Howard) answered with a double-double by scoring 48 points (!!!) and 16 rebounds and guard Sheng-Ju Ting (174-1998, college: St.Francis, IL) added 14 points, 10 assists and 4 steals in the effort for Taipei TM. Kings have a solid series of three victories in a row. Defending champion maintains fifth place with 11-11 record. Taipei TM lost third consecutive game. They keep the sixth position with 13 games lost. Kings are looking forward to face higher ranked Lioneers (#4) in Hsinchu in the next round and it will be quite challenging to get another victory. Taipei TM's supporters also look forward to an exciting derby game next round, where their team will travel locally in Taipei to the arena Kings.
Top scorers:
Taipei TM: M.Maker 48+16reb+1ast, S.Ting 14+3reb+10ast, C.Wen-Hung 9+3reb, K.Chien 7+2reb+1ast, H.Tsung-Han 6+2reb, S.Yi-Chin 6+2ast
Kings: O.Femi 25+9reb+4ast, D.Austin 18+9reb+7ast, T.Jordan 15+7reb+2ast, J.Lin 15+6reb+3ast, Y.Lin 13+6reb+7ast, R.Hsiung 12+1reb

Kaohsiung A. - N.Taipei CTBC 84-113

The game in Kaohsiung supposed to be also quite interesting. Third ranked DEA (12-10) played at the court of 7th ranked Aquas (6-17). DEA smashed Aquas 113-84 on Sunday. N.Taipei CTBC dominated down low during the game scoring 56 of its points in the paint compared to Aquas's 36 and made 21-of-24 free shots (87.5 percent) during the game. N.Taipei CTBC forced 23 Kaohsiung A. turnovers. They looked well-organized offensively handing out 30 assists comparing to just 16 passes made by Kaohsiung A.'s players. Montenegrin forward Marko Todorovic (208-1992) nailed 26 points and 8 rebounds for the winning side and Montenegrin power forward Nemanja Radovic (208-1991) accounted for 20 points and 11 rebounds. Four DEA players scored in double figures. Nigerian-American power forward Efe Uwadiae-Odigie (203-1989, college: Claflin) came up with a double-double by scoring 18 points and 11 rebounds and Croatian center Kristijan Krajina (208-1990, college: Mt.St.Mary's, agency: 011 Sports) added 8 points and 11 rebounds respectively for Kaohsiung A. in the defeat. Since the result was very predictable, it gave the chance for the coaches to test many bench players which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. N.Taipei CTBC moved-up to second place. Kaohsiung A. lost fifth consecutive game. They stay at the bottom position with 17 games lost. N.Taipei CTBC will meet league's leader Taiwan Beer L. in the next round and it will be for sure the game of the week. Kaohsiung A. will play against Taipei TM (#6) and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Kaohsiung A.: U.Efe 18+11reb, M.Fotol 17+1reb, Y.Chun-An 10, L.Wei-Ting 9+8reb+1ast, K.Krajina 8+11reb+1ast, L.Hu 7+2reb+4ast
N.Taipei CTBC: T.Marko 26+8reb+2ast, R.Nemanja 20+11reb+3ast, G.Bachir 18+1reb+1ast, T.Jian 12+5ast, C.Wei 8+1reb+4ast, B.Lewis 7+4reb

Taipei TM - Dreamers 91-104

The game between closely ranked teams ended with fifth ranked Dreamers' (12-11) victory over 6th ranked Mars (8-13) 104-91 on Sunday. Dreamers dominated down low during the game scoring 44 of its points in the paint compared to Mars's 20. Dreamers looked well-organized offensively handing out 28 assists. Ghanian-American power forward Ben Bentil (206-1995, college: Providence) nailed a double-double by scoring 27 points, 20 rebounds and 6 assists for the winning side and international center Brandon Gilbeck (213-1996, college: W.Illinois) accounted for 16 points and 13 rebounds. Kenyan-South Sudanese power forward Makur Maker (212-2000, college: Howard) came up with a double-double by scoring 34 points (!!!) and 22 rebounds and guard Sheng-Ju Ting (174-1998, college: St.Francis, IL) added 17 points, 5 rebounds and 8 assists respectively for Taipei TM in the defeat. Five Dreamers and four Taipei TM players scored in double figures. Dreamers moved-up to third place. Taipei TM lost third consecutive game. They keep the sixth position with 13 games lost. Dreamers will meet league's leader Taiwan Beer L. in the next round and it will be for sure the game of the week. Taipei TM's supporters look forward to an exciting derby game next round, where their team will travel locally in Taipei to the arena Kings.
Top scorers:
Taipei TM: M.Maker 34+22reb+3ast, S.Ting 17+5reb+8ast, H.Tsung-Han 13+2reb, S.Yi-Chin 13+2reb+2ast, C.Kuan-Chuan 5+3reb+1ast, X.Ming-Jun 4+3reb
Dreamers: B.Ben 27+20reb+6ast, G.Brandon 16+13reb+1ast, C.Ma 13+3reb+2ast, Y.Chiang 12+4reb+8ast, H.Aric 11+6reb+4ast, C.Tsung-Hsien 9+1reb+3ast