Yee Chun Leong
BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN
TUTONG Basketball secured their berth in the next round of the YOU.C1000 Cup after edging Menglait Basketball Club 77-73 in Group A last night.
Onn Jen Hao produced a game-high of 25 points to pace Tutong while Darren Yap was the other in double figures with 14 to his name.
On the other hand, A Jauhali led Menglait with 20 points while the duo of Danilo Felicilda and Justino Martinez chipped in 15 and 13 points respetively in what was their third straight defeat in as many days.
Menglait came into the encounter needing an 11-point victory to stay in the competition but will now be the only side out of nine teams not to make it into the next round before they complete their campaign against YTE tonight at 7.15pm.
A closely fought contest was expected and it proved to be right from tip off at the BBA court in Batu Bersurat.
Both sides were only separated by a single basket at the end of the first quarter after Louis Escopete beat the buzzer to put Menglait up 19-16.
Tutong started out the second period with a 7-0 run in the first two minutes laregly thanks to the sharp shooting of Yap.
They extended their advantage to as many as seven points before their opponents closed the gap to 37-33 at halftime.
Danilo Felicilda (L) of Menglait fouled by Ak Md Faizuladzmi Pg Tajuddin of Tutong while going for a layup. Picture: Yee Chun Leong
Tutong led by double figures for the first time after a triple by Han Ming Kwang to make it 46-35 two minutes after the interval.
Menglait picked up at the defensive end to force turnovers off their opponents and eventually stole the lead after a layup by Jauhali with 49 seconds left in the quarter to make it 54-53.
Tutong finished off strongly to ensure they get back in front with a 57-55 advantage going into the final period.
The game went down the wire as both teams were tied at 67-67 with three minutes left in regulation after a trey by Jauhali.
However, On Chee Khong sealed the victory for Tutong after he completed a three-point play with 56 seconds left to make it a two possession game.
