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HK Eastern trounces Phoenix to mark PBA debut
Hong Kong Eastern walloped Phoenix to notch its debut win, 102-87, in the Philippine Basketball Association, or PBA, Season 49 Commissioner’s Cup at the Philsports Arena in Pasig on Wednesday, November 27.
HK Eastern showed no jitters right from the start and just took care of business the rest of the way for a 1-0 start, while the Fuel Masters fell to a 0-1 card.
Familiar faces led the charge for the Hong Kong team with ex-PBA import Cameron Clark and former Bay Area player Hayden Blankley starring on both ends.
Clark, who has played for San Miguel and NLEX in the past, recorded a double-double with 25 points, 11 rebounds, two steals, and two blocks.
Blankley poured in 18 markers, dishing out five dimes and three rejections after making his PBA comeback nearly two years after the Dragons lost to Ginebra in the 2022-23 PBA Commissioner's Cup finals.
Photo Courtesy: PBA
"We are happy to join the PBA. Actually, we are not the same [because] I saw some comments that we are like Bay Area 2.0. We are not. We are really pure Hong Kong team with some additional power," HK Eastern coach Mensur Bajramovic said.
"For us, it means a lot but of course, we need to adjust because this is our first experience here.”
HK Eastern took a narrow 49-45 lead at the half before turning the tide in the third period with Blankley sinking a perfect 3-of-3 from the three-point territory to put the team ahead, 77-65.
Glen Yang added 13 points, seven assists, six rebounds, and two steals, while Kobey Lam produced eight markers, three boards, and three dimes in the winning effort.
Import Donovan Smith led the Fuel Masters with 33 markers, 11 boards, and two deflections, but his efforts were in vain as Phoenix's poor ball handling and erratic three-point shooting ultimately led to their downfall.
The Fuel Masters just made 2-of-13 three-point attempts and committed more turnovers (23) than assists (17).
Perkins, who backstopped Smith in the defeat, ended the night with 22 points, five rebounds, four assists, and two steals.
The Scores:
Eastern 102 – Clark 25, Blankley 18, Yang 13, Cheung 11, Lam 8, Cao 8, Xu 8, Guinchard 5, Leung 3, Chan 3, Sulaiman 0, Pok 0.
Phoenix 87 – Smith 33, Perkins 22, Rivero 10, Alejandro 8, Tuffin 4, Garcia 3, Ballungay 2, Manganti 2, Tio 2, Jazul 1, Camacho 0, Daves 0, Ular 0, Muyang 0, Verano 0.
Quarter Scores: 23-14, 49-45, 77-65, 102-87.
