Photo credit: ABL | abl.basketball
Philippines representative Zamboanga Valientes MLV (7-6) defeated Hong Kong Eastern (8-4), 71-65 in the fourth leg of the 2023 ASEAN Basketball League (ABL) Invitational tournament on Tuesday, February 14 at the Nguyen Du Arena in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.
Renaldo Balkman led the Valientes with another double-bouble of 27 points (9/19fg, 9/13ft) along with 14 rebounds, four steals and two blocks in 39 minutes of play as they kept their playoff hopes alive. Mario Chalmers finished with 11 points (1/15fg, 0/8 2pts, 1/7 3pts, 8/9ft) to go with four rebounds, four assists, three steals and one block.
Rudy Lingganay added 10 points, four rebounds, three assists and four steals while Kemark Cariño with a solid game of 9 points on perfect 4-of-4 shoting from the field, six rebounds, one assist and three steals. Jeremy Arthur had 8 points, two rebounds, game-high 7 assists and three steals. James Kuwekuteye scored 6 points and one rebound.
The Valientes will face the Singapore Slingers on Thursday, February 16 at 6:30pm. (UPDATE: SINGAPORE def. PHL, 97-87)
The Scores:
ZAMBOANGA 71 - Balkman 27, Chalmers 11, Lingganay 10, Cariño 9, Arthur 8, Kuwekuteye 6, Amores 0, Belorio 0, Cawaling DNP, Esa DNP, Ferrer DNP, Cadiz DNP.
HONG KONG 65 – McLaughlin 22, Gilbet 18, Bassett 9, O. Xu 8, Chan 3, A. Xu 3, Pok 2, Sheikh 0, Leung 0.
Quarters: 21-16, 34-31, 48-55, 71-65. [GAME STATS] | [GAME HIGHLIGHTS]