Strong Group outclasses Chinese Taipei to rule Jones Cup title

The William Jones Cup crown is back at the hands of the Filipinos after Strong Group Athletics-Pilipinas trounced hometown bets Chinese Taipei and secured a 83-79 victory on Sunday, July 21, at the Xinzhuang Gymnasium in Taiwan.

The Philippine representative completed a title sweep after going undefeated eight times and achieved what they fell short last January when they finished runner-up in the 33rd Dubai International Championship with a team reinforced by former NBA player Dwight Howard. SGA lost to Al Riyadi in the final.

In the championship game against Chinese Taipei-A, Tajuan Agee lead the pack with game-high 21 points, nine rebounds, three assists, two steals, a block, and a perfect nine-of-nine from the free throw line, following him was DJ Fenner who contributed with 15 markers, nine boards, and four steals.

RJ Abarrientos tallied 14 on four-of-eight shooting from the three-point line in his last game before joining crowd favorite Barangay Ginebra in PBA.

Also standing out is veteran guard Kiefer Ravena as he provided nine markers on a 3-of-6 clip along with four rebounds, four assists, and two steals.

Chris McCullough, on the other hand, finished with 12 points on 4-of-16 shooting.

McCullough was later named the tournament Most Valuable Player, averaging 21.1 points, 8.1 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.6 steals, and 1.1 blocks in Strong Group’s eight-game sweep.

Robert Tsang Hinton led Taiwan’s failed attempt at the title with 16 points, Cheng Yin Chun followed with 13, while Brandon Gilbeck had a double-double of 11, 13 boards along with five blocks as the host team settled for the runner-up finish with its 7-1 record.

Strong Group became the seventh Philippine team to rule the annual Jones Cup. The last time the country reigned supreme was in 2019 under the Mighty Sports squad, which incidentally, was also coached by Charles Tiu.

The sweep might be sweet for the SGA-Philippines in the 43rd William Jones Cup but controversy has entered the picture when the eventual tournament Most Valuable Player Chris McCullough only scored 12 points in 4-of-16 shooting from the field. He also fouled out late in the game’s overtime. Some netizens noticed his sub-par performance and questioned if he threw the game due to his impending naturalization to Taiwan.

However, McCullough addressed the issue in social media saying, "I always represent the flag wherever I play, so for some of you fans saying all this nonsense, it’s ridiculous. Because I didn’t have the best game in a championship match, now I fix games? Come on now.”

He also tweeted “It happens, and it is what it is. It’s always the next man up, and T (Tajuan Agee) stepped up big tonight! That’s the next man up mentality—he picked up my slack and got the job done!”

McCullough averaged 22.42 points and 8.57 rebounds before their final game against Chinese Taipei-A that led to controversy.

He might have received backlash from some fans but others also supported the SGA reinforcement by saying he just had an off night which usually happens to any player.

CMac is the fifth player from a Philippine team to win the top individual award in midseason meet while the Philippines got its 7th title of the tourney.