Dulay sparks Slingers romp over Beermen

MANILA, Philippines - Fil-Am guard Don Dulay delivered the killer blows as the Singapore Slingers held off a slow-starting San Miguel Beermen, 71-63, to seize the solo lead in the third AirAsia ASEAN Basketball League Wednesday night at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.

Dulay scattered a game-high 23 points, including the Slingers’ first eight markers, and capped his heroics with a basket and three charities in the face of SMB’s fourth-quarter fightback to help seal their fourth straight triumph.

The Slingers, who wore special pink jerseys as they dedicated the game to cancer awareness, vaulted to solo leadership after erstwhile unbeaten Westports Malaysia Dragons dropped to 3-1 after yielding a 70-73 home setback to the Bangkok Cobras.

The Dragons shared second spot with the AirAsia Philippine Patriots, who trounced winless Saigon Heat, 76-62, over at the Ynares Sports Arena, for their second consecutive win and a 3-1 slate.

“Effort wasn’t enough. Singapore guards Dulay and (Wei Long) Wong (11) burned us, 34 points combined,” said SMB sports consultant Noli Eala.

Dulay broke a 59-59 standoff with a jumper then import Louis Graham followed with a layup and Wong nailed a clutch trey off two SMB turnovers as Singapore took a 66-59 cushion going to the last 56 seconds.

The Beermen got to within 63-67 on Leo Avenido’s freebies but Dulay drew a foul from Rizada and calmly sank his free throws to give Singapore a fresh six-point tear. Dulay split on his next trip following a missed trey by Avenido to settle the issue.

“SMB imports outscored Singapore 29-26. But our locals were just not there,” said Eala.

Dalron Johnson fired 19 and pulled down 11 rebounds in a no-relief job while Doug Thomas finished with 10 markers and nine boards despite limited action due to an eye injury. Froilan Baguion was the lone bright spot among the locals with 15 points, five steals and four assists.

Graham shot 16 and Donald Little had 10 points, 17 caroms and four blocks for Singapore, complementing with Dulay and Wong.

“Defense was the key. We also started the game really well while Donald (Little) and Louis (Graham) played excellent defense, “ said Slingers’ coach Neo Beng Siang, whose crew held SMB to 24/69 (35 percent) clip while making 25/63 (40 percent).

Pouncing on SMB’s listless start and probably inspired playing for a cause, the Slingers raced ahead to double digit spreads and enjoyed a 39-24 bubble at the halfway point.