Slinger Louis Graham (#24) takes a shot early in the first quarter. Both sides squandered opportunities in a low-scoring quarter that ended at 10 points apiece. (Photo 1 © Low Sze Sen/Red Sports)
Singapore Indoor Stadium, Singapore, Sunday, April 29, 2012 – The Singapore Slingers beat the visiting Saigon Heat 73-67 in the ASEAN Basketball League (ABL) to improve their win-loss record to 8-10 after they lost 64-68 to the league-leading San Miguel Beermen in midweek.
However, the Slingers still lie in fifth spot on the league table, with the Malaysia Dragons still occupying the fourth and final playoff spot with a 97-93 over the Philippine Patriots.
As for the Heat, this loss drops them to 6-12 and their playoff hopes are all but over.
Louis Graham led the Slingers with 29 points and 15 rebounds while teammate Kyle Jeffers also recorded a double-double with 20 points and 14 rebounds.
The Slingers led 34-31 at half-time.
A basket from Jonathan Jones with 6:34 left in the third quarter gave the Heat their biggest lead of six in the game at 39-33 but Graham quickly responded by scoring eight straight points to trim the Heat’s lead to just one at 42-41. An 8-2 run by the Slingers in the last 2:56 capped by a shot from Jeffers sent them to the fourth quarter with a 49-46 lead.
The Slingers continued their scoring momentum at the start of the fourth quarter with a 6-0 run to take a 55-46 lead with 7:31 left in the game after a basket from Wong Wei Long.
Jonathan Jones, who finished with 31 points and 12 rebounds, tried to rally the Heat after his shot trimmed the Slingers’ lead to five at 59-54 with 4:47 left in the game. On the next Heat possession, Jahmar Thorpe missed a crucial three-point shot that could have put Heat within two points of the Slingers.
A basket from Don Dulay, who finished with nine points, gave the Slingers a 69-58 lead with 1:20 left to effectively end the contest.
The Slingers next travel to Manila on Saturday, May 5th, to play against the Philippine Patriots (14-5) who are second in the table.
Scoring by Quarter
Slingers vs Heat
1st Q: 10-10
2nd Q: 21-24 (31-34)
3rd Q: 18-12 (49-56)
4th Q: 24-21
Final Score: 73-67
Slingers
Louis Graham – 29 points, Kyle Jeffers – 20, Don Dulay – 9, Wong Wei Long – 8, Desmond Oh – 4, Vaughn Canta – 2, Sheng Yu – 1
Heat
Jonathan Jones – 31 points, Jahmar Thorpe – 16, John Smith – 9, Noy Javier – 7, Rob Sanz – 4
2012 ASEAN Basketball League fixture schedule
More photos next page
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