Triple-double games became the norm on opening day of The Asian Tournament as Haroun Mohamed and JM Ondevilla quickly made their presence felt with their brilliant, all-around performances right from the get-go of this tournament held once more at the City of Passi Arena in Iloilo.
Mohamed scored 14 points, dished out 18 assists and pulled down 16 rebounds as he provided the Dragons the versatility they need and helped the team in their 100-85 triumph over the Phuket Whalers on Monday.
Tyrel Jabar Corbin erupted for 34 points while also dishing out six assists and completing two steals for the Dragons, who hit 16 three-point shots despite showing up with only eight players.
But those Elite Eight came out ready to play as Julius Hannibal produced a double-double performance of 23 points and 15 rebounds.
Hannibal hit nine of 12 attempts from the field and proved to be a force down low to complement Corbin’s hot shooting.
Corbin knocked down seven three-point shots to set the tone for the Dragons’ breakaway.
But if there was one player who stole the thunder for the entire Dragons squad, it’s Haroun Mohamed, who immediately made his presence felt on opening day with a triple-double showing.
Kareem Huntley chipped in 14 markers for the Dragons, who outrebounded their rivals, 57-42.
But Mohamed wasn’t the only one poised to complete a triple-double showing as Ondevilla stuffed the stats sheet later on.
A balance offensive firepower were displayed by the Kalmado Islanders, who barely broke out a sweat in giving the Guangzhou Loong Lions a sound beating, 95-58.
Ondevilla’s triple-double game sparked a steady flow of offensive firepower for the Islanders, who had six players finishing in double figures.
Led by Ondevilla, who ended up with 10 points, but dished out 20 assists and pulled down 10 rebounds, the Islanders were overpowering in the rebounding department, grabbing 71 rebounds compared to only 43 for the Loong Lions.
The Islanders posted leads as high as 43 points, 54-11, as early as the second period and were never seriously threatened from there.
Two players finished with double-double games for Kalmado –Hakim Njiasse and Mouhamed Faty.
Njiasse produced 20 points and 15 rebounds while Faty submitted 12 markers on top of 20 boards as the Islanders showed total dominance inside. Kalmado scored 68 points inside the shaded lane, 38 more than its rival.
As far as point production is concerned, Marvin Lee took centerstage and drilled in 27 markers, including five three-point shots.
Mark Refulfa added 14 points Buboy Bernardo contributed 12 for the Isanders, who scored 26 second-chance points, 20 more than their counterparts.
Magnificent 7 gets job done for Aces; Titans make home crowd proud
Denzel Wong and the Magificent Seven of the Aces worked double time to turn back the Macau Black Bears, 103-94.
Wong caught fire and led the point production of the Aces with 21, but six other players wound up in double figures, including three double-double games from Emmanuel Ojuola, Xavier Alexander and Serhi Pryimak.
Ojuola finished with 15 points and 15 rebounds, Alexander tallier 15 markers on top of 14 boards and Pryimak scattered 10 points and 15 rebounds as the Aces displayed their usual balance firepower in defeating the Black Bears.
Macky Acosta hit 6-of-10 shots from the field to produce 15 markers, while Oleksandr Kolchenko and Gosh Sesay each produced 10 for the Aces, who overpowered their rivals in points inside the paint, 54-22.
The Aces also had 36 second-chance points, 25 more than their counterparts.
Hometown team Passi Titans didn’t let their local folks disappointed as they overpowered the Chichi Fresh Kicks Gamu Wildcats, 100-76.
Rey Anthony Peralta led all scorers as he pumped in 29 points as he backstopped five other players finishing in double figures for the Titans, whose bench production proved to be the deciding factor in winning convincingly over the Wildcats.
As a team, Passi generated 73 points from players coming off the bench, 63 more than the opposing squad.
Darrel Kent Villarosa added 11 markers while four players all tallied 10 markers apiece — Joseph Nalos, Musa Diona, Nichole Ubalde and Claude Camit.
Diona capped his solid game with a double-double performance as he also added 10 boards.
Also turning out to become a key contributor, particularly on the defensive end, was Las Coulibaly, who grabbed 11 boards.
