TBSL Round 5: Adroit still not able to record any victory

Nouchan Thavong

Here is the last round review presented by ESL.

Bottom-ranked Adroit is still unable to win any game. This time they lost on the road their sixth consecutive match to fourth ranked Luang (4-2) 97-61 on Friday evening. Luang dominated down low during the game scoring 76 of its points in the paint compared to Adroit's 38. Luang forced 24 Adroit turnovers. They looked well-organized offensively handing out 34 assists. Laos guard Nouchan Thavong orchestrated the victory by scoring 23 points and 7 assists. American center Russell Permenter (203-88, college: Providence) contributed with 16 points, 13 rebounds and 4 assists for the winners. Serbian center Milos Cabarkapa (208-93, college: Indianapolis) answered with a double-double by scoring 21 points and 10 rebounds for Adroit. Luang maintains fourth place with 4-2 record. Adroit at the other side still closes the standings with six games lost. Luang are looking forward to face SWU (#7) in the next round. Adroit will play against the league's second-placed Kabayan and hopes to get finally their first victory.
The game in was also worth to mention about. Second ranked Kabayan (5-1) played at the court of 5th ranked Pilipinas (2-3). Kabayan defeated Pilipinas 73-61. Australian center Emanuel Malou (206-93, college: Iowa St.) stepped up and scored 25 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists for the winners and Nick Demusis chipped in 20 points and 8 rebounds. American center Raymond Miller (204-88, college: CS Fullerton) responded with a double-double by scoring 18 points and 14 rebounds. Kabayan maintains second place with 5-1 record having just one point less than leader Hitech. Newly promoted Pilipinas keep the fifth position with three games lost. Kabayan will play against bottom-ranked Adroit (#8) in Singapore in the next round which should be theoretically an easy game. Pilipinas will play at home against the league's leader Hitech and hope to get back on the winning track.
The game in was also quite interesting. Leader Hitech (5-0) played at the court of 6th ranked Malaysia Matrix (1-4). Hitech did not have too big problems and got a relatively easy victory 99-81 on Friday. Avery Scharer nailed a double-double by scoring 29 points, 12 rebounds and 9 assists for the winning side. Chun-Hong Ting came up with 23 points and 8 rebounds for Malaysia Matrix in the defeat. Malaysia Matrix's coach Brian Lester rotated twelve players seeing no chance for a win. Undefeated Hitech have an impressive series of five victories in a row. Defending champion keeps a position of league leader. Newly promoted Malaysia Matrix keeps the sixth place with four games lost. Hitech will meet Pilipinas (#5) in the next round. Malaysia Matrix will play against PEA and hope to win that game.
The game in was also worth to mention about. Third ranked PEA (4-1) played at the court of 7th ranked SWU (1-5). PEA managed to secure a 5-point victory 95-90. The best player for the winners was Xavier Dupree who had a double-double by scoring 21 points, 21 rebounds, 4 assists and 4 steals. SWU's coach Thongchat Phucharoen tried various players' combinations and tested in total eleven players in this game, but that didn't help. The victory was the fourth consecutive win for PEA. They maintain third place with 4-1 record behind leader Hitech. SWU lost their fifth game in a row. They keep the seventh position with five games lost. PEA's next round opponent will be Malaysia Matrix (#6). SWU will play against Luang in Laos and hope to win that game.