Contributed by Cheryl Ng.

slingers vs pampanga buddies basketball

Eric Sandrin (Slingers, #14) in an earlier game against Philippines’ Pampanga Buddies. (Photo © Lai Jun Wei/Red Sports file photo)

After two close losses at the buzzer during the the Brunei Cup, the Darwin All Stars will be out for revenge against the Slingers

The Singapore Slingers will take on the Darwin All Stars in what is expected to be a highly competitive and fiery showdown at the Singapore Indoor Stadium on 16 December.

Darwin will be out to prove their might, after two close losses at the buzzer to Singapore during the first round and semifinals of the Brunei Cup in August.

The Slingers made crucial triples at the buzzer in both games to beat Darwin by 1 point in the first round and 2 points during the semifinals of the Brunei Cup.

Said Darwin All Stars coach Don Sheppard, “In all my days of coaching, I have never been beaten twice on a buzzer beater in the last seconds, let alone have it happen twice in the same tournament against the same team. We are eager to reverse that outcome in Singapore, and this is one of the reasons we have accepted the invitation to play in the Singapore Challenge Series.”

Slingers coach Frank Arsego is anticipating a tough and physical encounter against a determined Darwin team that will be out to avenge their losses.

“The Darwin team will literally be a big challenge for us, as they have big and physical players like centre Brad Bridgewater, who is 203cm and 130kg. He is a mountain of a man who is also athletic and mobile for his size and an excellent rebounder,” said Slingers coach Frank Arsego.

“We’ve played a couple of extremely close and exciting games against the Darwin All Stars team, and we are definitely looking forward to the challenge,” he added.

Slingers star power forward Eric Sandrin, who top scored for his team with 14 points during their trouncing of Indonesia’s Satria Muda Britama last Sunday, is keen to continue his fine form in the upcoming showdown against Darwin.

“Darwin has a greater inside presence than the Indonesian team, so we will need to step up our defense in the paint when we face them tomorrow. We’ve enjoyed highly competitive challenges during our last two encounters with them so the fans will certainly be in for some thrilling action tomorrow,” he added.

The Slingers next face the Darwin All Stars in Darwin on Sunday in the second leg of this home and away double.