Pinoy point guards run show in ABL

MANILA, Philippines - While the American imports expectedly grabbed the lion’s share in scoring and rebounding in the third AirAsia ASEAN Basketball League, two diminutive point guards from the Philippine teams are showing the way in other key departments.

Al Vergara of pacesetting AirAsia Philippine Patriots (6-1) topped ‘em all when it comes to assists, dishing off 6.67 per game after the first round. He complemented this with an average of 11.43 points and two steals, the fifth best in the league, to help the Patriots take the first round pennant.

Froilan Baguion of San Miguel Beermen (5-2) was the No. 1 “pickpocket,” averaging 2 an outing to go with a second-best 4.71 feeds as he played a crucial role in SMB’s rise to joint second with Westports Malaysia Dragons through seven outings.

Interestingly, Julius Hodge, an import from the league’s doormat Saigon Heat (0-7), held the fort in scoring 25 points in his six games for the expansion team.

However, the American scoring machine will likely be bumped off the summit after being released by the Heat for the remainder of the season.

Heat general manager Connor Nguyen said they let go of Hodge due to “difficulties fitting in because of the differences in the environment and the challenges that come with playing professional basketball in this region.”

He was replaced by Devon Sullivan, who debuted with five points and nine rebounds in their 61-76 home loss to Bangkok Cobras last Sunday.

Anyone among Tiras Wade of the Dragons (24.86), Anthony Johnson of the Patriots (24.57), Brian Williams of the Dragons (21.14) and Deanre Thomas of Chang Thailand Slammers (21.13) is capable of rising up to the leaderboard.

Williams was the king of the boards with 15.14 rpg, followed by Indonesia Warriors’ Steven Thomas (14.71), Louis Graham of the Slingers (13.13), Gentry Lewis of the Cobras (11.71) and Jonathan Jones of the Heat (11.57).

Cobra’s reinforcement Michael Earl was the sultan of swats with 3.67.