Chris McCullough had another solid performance for the now 4-0 Strong Group. SGA/Jones Cup

 

MANILA–Strong Group Athletics returned with a bang in the Jones Cup by handing Malaysia its first loss in the tournament through an 89-54 beating on Wednesday night at the Xinzhuang Gymnasium in New Taipei.

Save for a solid second-quarter showing from Malaysia, Strong Group, returning from a Tuesday bye, turned to its defense to stifle its Southeast Asian neighbor.

Strong Group opened the game by holding Malaysia to just 11 points in the first period while opening a 10-point lead at the end of the quarter.

Malaysia improved offensively in the second quarter, outscoring Strong Group, 25-19, to cut the lead down to four, 40-36, at halftime, and the Malaysians even got to tie the game early in the third.

However, Strong Group bounced back by holding Malaysia to just eight points the rest of the third and only six in the entire fourth quarter even as the Filipino club dropped 30 in the final frame to pull away.

Chris McCullough led Strong Group, now 4-0 in the tournament, with 16 points, five rebounds, one assist, and one steal.

Rhenz Abando added 14 points on 4-for-6 shooting from long range, 10 rebounds, three assists, one steal, and two blocks.

Ange Kouame also tallied a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds along with one block.

RJ Abarrientos came close to a double-double of his own with 12 assists and nine points alongside five rebounds and two steals.

John Murry, currently the leading scorer in the entire Jones Cup, put up 25 points, seven rebounds, three assists, and three steals to lead Malaysia, which brought in three foreign reinforcements for the event.

Joe Obasa, who took over Ateneo’s foreign student-athlete spot after Kouame graduated, added 13 points, six rebounds, one assist, three blocks, and one steal.

Box Scores:

Strong Group 89-McCullough 16, Abando 14, Agee 12, Kouame 11, Fenner 10, Abarrientos 9, Ildefonso 8, Heading 4, Ravena 3, Ynot 2, Chiu 0

Malaysia 54-Murry 25, Obasa 13, Bosango 6, Y. Wong 3, J. Wong 3, Ting 2, Kuek 2, De 0, JH Lee 0, Chang 0, JK Lee 0, Ragu 0

Quarterscores: 21-11, 40-36, 59-48, 89-54