Yee Chun Leong
BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN
EASYWAY picked up their first win in Group B of the YOU.C1000 Cup after defeating Patriots 92-72 on Wednesday.
They had distributed scoring with four players in double figures.
Jonathan Lim topscored for Easyway with 15 points while Jake Chong added 14.
Jeremy Chu knocked down four treys enroute to 13 points and Edwin Oei chipped in 10 in the triumph.
The Patriots only had eight players available with Jensen Efondo dropping a game-high of 19 points.
Lesly Kuan poured in 17 and Mark Prino contributed 12 in the defeat.
It wasn't the best start for Easyway as they lost Lim Liang Wei just over two minutes into the game with a left ankle sprain.
Patriots led the entire opening period and by as many as six points at the BBA Court in Batu Bersurat.
A three-pointer by William Ching just before the end cut the deficit to 23-20 going into the second frame.
They scored five quick points and a layup by Jonathan gave them their first lead.
Easyway went with man-to-man defence and used a 9-0 run late in the stanza to see them open up a 43-32 advantage with over a minute left to the break.
They got it up to as many as 15 points but a defensive lapse saw Prino beat the buzzer as the scoreboard read 49-36 at halftime.
The lead was up to as large as 18 points but Patriots retaliated with seven unanswered points.
Easyway were sloppy with their turnovers and Patriots remained within reach at 71-59 heading into the fourth quarter.
Back-to-back baskets by Easyway resulted in Patriots taking a timeout to regroup.
They got some easy baskets on the break and closed to within 11 points.
However, they simply didn't have enough gas in their tank after two players fouled out allowing Easyway to grab the vital win.
