Strong Group Athletics-Pilipinas (SGA) ended the group stage of the 45th William Jones Cup on a dominant note, dismantling host Chinese Taipei Blue, 117-74, on Thursday evening.
The 43-point victory capped a five-game winning streak for the Philippine side and gave the two-time defending champions a 5-1 record in Group A. However, despite their impressive record, Strong Group was eliminated from semifinal contention due to the tournament’s new format and has officially bid farewell to their three-peat dreams.
Strong Group Starts on a Strong Note
Already knowing that their three-peat hopes had been dashed after Japan’s earlier loss to Wonju Promy, Strong Group showed no signs of slowing down as it immediately imposed its will on the hosts.
The Philippines jumped to a 25-17 lead after the opening quarter before completely taking over in the middle periods. Strong Group outscored Chinese Taipei Blue by a combined 67-32 in the second and third quarters, turning the contest into a one-sided affair.
The Philippine side continued to attack relentlessly and eventually built its biggest lead at 49 points.
Strong Group Turns It Up
Strong Group’s offense continued to click after halftime, highlighted by a massive 38-14 third-quarter explosion that effectively put the game beyond reach.
The defending champions moved the ball efficiently and consistently found open looks, finishing the game shooting 56.1 percent from the field. They were also highly efficient from the free-throw line, converting 86.8 percent of their attempts.
With the game already decided, Strong Group continued to receive contributions from throughout its lineup as almost every player found the scoring column.
Remy Martin Highlights Offensive Prowess
Isaiah Piñeiro once again led the way for Strong Group, producing a double-double of 22 points and 13 rebounds while adding 5 assists.
Remy Martin provided a huge spark off the bench, scoring 19 points on 7-of-9 shooting in just 11 minutes of action.
Matthew Wright continued his strong tournament run with 18 points, including four three-pointers, while Titing Manalili filled the stat sheet with 13 points, 6 rebounds, and 8 assists.
Boban Marjanović added 12 points and 6 rebounds, while DJ Fenner contributed 10 points. Tajuan Agee finished with 9, while William Navarro and Malick Diouf scored 6 and 4, respectively.
Chinese Taipei Blue was led by Ming-Jun Xie with 18 points, followed by Chiang-Shuang Chen with 14 and Jonah Morrison with 12.
Three-Peat Bid Ends Despite 5-1 Record
Despite finishing the group stage with an outstanding 5-1 record, Strong Group will not advance to the semifinals. They defeated both Japan and Chinese Taipei Blue twice and avenged their lone loss against South Korea. The team will instead be battling it out in the classification phase instead of going for the crown because Chinese Taipei Blue has been given an automatic semis berth, leaving only one slot to contest in Group A. Unfortunately, SGA couldn’t make up for its 31-point beating from the South Korean side on opening day as it avenged said loss only by five points.
“We wanted to really blow out Taipei to show that we were the ones who deserved to be playing for the championship. We’ve really hit our stride and are playing at a high level right now. It’s just so, so unfortunate that this is the way things are set up,” said head coach Charles Tiu.
Wonju DB Promy secured the top spot in Group A after defeating Japan, giving the Korean side the tiebreaker advantage over Strong Group. Meanwhile, Chinese Taipei Blue was guaranteed a semifinal berth as the host despite finishing the group stage with a 1-5 record under the tournament’s new format.
“We want to continue to represent the Philippines and our community here with pride, so we will finish strong,” said Tiu, referring to their last match in the classification phase.
The Philippine side will now compete for fifth place as they face Jordan on Friday, August 21, at 7:00 p.m.
