MANILA – Strong Group Athletics-Pilipinas cruised to a dominant 100-63 victory over home team Al Sharjah Club to advance to the semifinals of the 34th Dubai International Basketball Championship on Thursday night (Friday morning in the Philippines) at Dubai, UAE.
DeMarcus Cousins led the way with a double-double of 21 points and 10 rebounds to go with four assists, two steals, and a block in the SGA-Pilipinas’ lopsided quarterfinals win.
Chris McCullough came off the bench to deliver 20 markers, while Mikey Williams and Dave Ildefonso contributed 11 markers apiece for the Philippine representatives.
The SGA-Pilipinas built a double-digit lead early on in the match behind inside conversions from Cousins before wrapping up the quarter with a 31-16 advantage courtesy of baskets from Ildefonso and Jason Brickman.
Despite Al Sharjah’s efforts to trim the gap in the second quarter, the SGA-Pilipinas continued to hold on to a double-digit spread at half-time at 49-36 with connections from Williams.
In the second half, Cousins and the rest of the SGA-Pilipinas continued to have their way against Sharjah, widening the lead by as many as 37 points to end the match after a basket from McCullough.
Nicholas West paced the Al Sharjah Club with 19 points and seven rebounds, while former NLEX Road Warriors’ import Dequan Jones had 18 markers, including two three-point conversions.
With the win, the Charles Tiu-mentored SGA-Pilipinas clinched their knockout semifinal berth, where they will face Tunisia’s national basketball team on Saturday night (Sunday morning in the Philippines).
Tunisia secured their place in the Final Four following a 93-83 victory over the Amman United Club in the other quarterfinals game./PN
BOX SCORE:
SGA-PILIPINAS 100 — Cousins 21, McCullough 20, Williams 11, Ildefonso 11, Richardson 9, Brickman 8, Abando 7, Kouame 6, Liwag 4, Sanchez 3, Blatche 0, Koon 0.
AL SHARJAH 63 — West 19, Jones 18, Asad 9, Roberson 9, Gueye 2, Thani 2, Almaazmi 2, Al Midfa 2, Alblooshi 0, Alhamaadi 0, Alkharooshi 0, Ahmad 0.
Quarterscores: 31-16, 49-36, 75-51, 100-63.
