HO CHI MINH CITY, Vietnam – The Bangkok Cobras played with an unforgiving defense and held the Saigon Heat to only five field goals in the second half to claim a 76-61 victory in an ASEAN Basketball League game here last night.
Michael Earl led the Cobras with 19 points. Gentry Lewis contributed with his double-double of 14 points and 11 rebounds.
Saigon jumped to a 12-2 lead early after a Jonathan Jones three-point shot. Jones finished the first half with 21 points, giving the Heat a 40-36 lead going into the second half.
Things changed drastically for Saigon after halftime. The Cobras made a few adjustments and held Saigon to just one field goal in the third quarter.
Cobras shooter Ratdech Kruatiwa started the quarter by hitting back-to-back three-point shots and Michael Earl added a shot to give the Cobras their first lead in the game at 44-42. The Cobras pushed the lead to 11 points at the end of the third quarter after a basket from Darunpong Apiromvilaichai.
The Cobras had their biggest lead at 69-43 after Marvin Cruz made a shot with 4:14 left.
Saigon’s guards Noy Javier and John Smith hit back-to-back three-point shots in the last two minutes but it wasn’t enough to turn the tide.
In Malaysia, the Malaysia Dragons quickly pulled away with a 12-point run, to score an 86-71 win over the Singapore Slingers.