Dacin clinches playoff seed with OT win over Mars

Tien Lei tallied 29 points and 9 rebounds to go with a game-winning block as Dacin edged short-handed Mars 91-85 in overtime and finally clinched a playoff seed. Yulon and SINA are the first two teams advancing to the playoffs.

Mars’ postseason hope is still alive though. If they beat SINA next week or Jutai lose to Taiwan Beer next week, they’re in.

Jutai put themselves in dire situation when they lost to BOT this week and failed to clinch the playoffs. The only scenario for them to advance now is they beat TB and Mars lose to SINA next week.

Summary
Yulon 75-62 Taiwan Beer (Half 36-39)
Yulon - Chiu Chi-yi 18p, Chen Hsin-an 16p+5a, Chou Shih-yuan 10p, Chiu Tsun-chih 9p+6rb
TB - Lin Chih-jay 22p+10rb, Liao Wei-chen 13p+6rb, Lee Wei-min 12p+9rb, Wu Chih-yuan 6p+8rb

Dacin 91-85(OT) Mars (Half 50-43, Regulation 77-77)
Dacin - Tien Lei 29p+9rb, Hsu Chi-chao 19p+8rb, Huang Chih-chun 17p+7a, Chang Chi-feng 14p+8rb, Lee Fong-yong 8p+9rb
Mars - Lee Chi-yi 22p+7rb, Lai Kuo-hong 15p+6rb, Lin Shin-hwa 12p, Hu Yu-wei 12p, Lin Jia-huang 11p, Chen Huei 11p+9rb, Yen Shin-shu DNP

Jutai upset by BOT

With almost one foot in the playoff door, Jutai was upset by BOT, 75-68, and suddenly in jeopardy of being knocked out of the postseason.

O-Yang Jin-hen scored game-high 24 points but committed two crucial turnovers in the final minute, as Jutai lost a victory they were supposed to get. Now they drop to 11-12, a half game behind Dacin and Mars, with only one game left.

If Jutai beat BOT today and Taiwan Beer next week, they should be able to lock up the No.3 seed.

Huang Chun-hsiung finally found back his game with 23 points and 7 rebounds as SINA snapped its six-game losing streak by beating Dacin 78-67 and clinched its playoff birth.

Summary
3/27
BOT 75-68 Jutai (Half 41-41)
BOT – Chuan Xiao-wen 23p, Hsu Hao-cheng 17p+5a, Ju Yong-hong 14p+8rb
Jutai – O-Yang Jin-hen 24p, Yang Yu-min 23p, Wu Dai-hao 4p+11rb+4blk

SINA 78-67 Dacin (Half 35-28)
SINA – Huang Chun-hsiung 23p+7rb, Chou Jun-san 15p, Kao Li-min 12p+8rb, Lo Shin-liang 11p+6rb
Dacin – Tien Lei 27p+11rb, Hsu Chi-chao 14p, Huang Chi-chun 10p+6rb+7a

3/26
Yulon 86-71 Mars (Half 40-35)
Yulon – Chou Shih-yuan 15p, Lee Chih-ming 12p, Wu Chih-wei 10p
Mars – Lai Kuo-hong 19p+8rb, Chen Huei 15p, Yen Shin-shu 10p, Lee Chi-yi 9p+9rb

Jutai playoffs bound; SINA keeps sliding

SBL action is every bit as exciting as the Taiwanese Presidential election last week, with teams moving up and down the standing. Jutai edged Dacin last night 74-73 on Wu Dai-hao’s game-winning steal and dunk and already had one foot in the playoffs door although they are now only 11-11.

With two games remaining in the schedule, Jutai is expected to beat Taiwan Beer and Bank of Taiwan to finish the season 13-11. And it should be good enough for a playoff seed, since Dacin and Mars are still tied at 11-10 and both have three tough games to play.

Yulon edged SINA 69-65 to even the season series at 2-2, thanks to Wei Yong-tai’s consecutive three-pointers in crunch time and 21 points from Chen Hsin-an. Meanwhile, SINA kept sliding as they lost for the sixth straight times and looked helpless.

Taiwan Beer also beat Mars 82-76 on March 18th to push its season-high winning streak to three games. TB is now 9-12 and mathematically still has a chance to squeeze into the playoffs, although, realistically, the post-season is probably out of reach.

Summary
3/21
Jutai 74-73 Dacin (Half 41-37)
Jutai - Shin Jin-chan 21p, Shan Wei-fan 15p+11rb, Wu Dai-hao 14p+9rb+3s+2blk, Yang Yu-min 10p+4a+3s
Dacin - Tien Lei 26p+10rb+4blk, Hsu Chi-chao 18p, Lee Fong-yong 11p+9rb

Mars 92-85 BOT (Half 52-33)
Mars - Yen Shin-shu 26p+6rb+5a, Lee Chi-yi 16p+9rb, Chen Huei 14p+7rb
BOT - Wu Yong-jen 18p+5a, Chuang Xiao-wen 15p, Yang Chin-min 15p, Chien Ming-fu 14p+9rb+7a, Chou Ben-tang 10p+7rb

3/19
Dacin 89-74 BOT (Half 45-39)
Dacin - Chang Chi-feng 26p+10rb+4a+3s, Tien Lei 17p+10rb+3s+3blk, Hsu Chi-chao 16p+6rb
BOT - Chuang Xiao-wen 18p, Yang Chin-min 14p, Wu Yong-jen 14p, Hsu Hao-cheng 11p+7rb, Lin Chun-feng 10p+8rb+4a

3/18
Taiwan Beer 82-76 Mars (Half 31-34)
TB - Wu Chih-yuan 22p+10rb, Chen Shih-nian 20p+7rb+6a, Lin Chih-jay 19p+9rb, Liao Wei-chen 7p+12rb
Mars - Yen Shin-shu 21p+8rb+4a, Yang Che-yi 20p+9rb, Lai Kuo-hong 17p+11rb

Yulon 69-65 SINA (Half 32-30)
Yulon - Chen Hsin-an 21p+12rb+4a, Wei Yong-tai 13p+8rb, Chen Chih-chun 11p, Tsun Wen-din 8p+8rb+5blk
SINA - Lo Shin-liang 19p+6rb+5a, Chou Jun-san 11p+7rb, Liu Yi-hsiang 13p+8rb, Huang Chun-hsiung 12p+10rb

Lin Kuan-lun leaves Dacin, may join Taiwan Beer

-- Unsatisfied with his playing time, SG Lin Kuan-lun left Dacin two weeks ago. Rumors say he will join Taiwan Beer. But it’s not confirmed yet.

-- Chou Jun-san was voted Week 15 Baller of the Week and became the first three-time winner of BOW award.

BOW Winner
Week 15: Mar 12-14 Chou Jun-san(SINA)
Week 14: Mar 6-7 Hsu Cheng-wen(Taiwan Beer)
Week 13: Feb 28-29 Yang Yu-min(Jutai)

Refs take center stage in SBL

Referees, instead of players, were the focal point during this past week in SBL action. Dacin head coach Liu Jia-fa confronted a referee after the final buzzer Sunday night, when Dacin lost 79-80 to Taiwan Beer in an important matchup.

The confrontation marks the third consecutive day that SBL games ended in controversy and complain to officiating. Last Friday SINA claimed referees favored Taiwan Beer. Mars claimed referees favored Dacin and almost pulled out of the game Saturday night.

In my opinion, it’s true that SBL and CTBA have to work together to improve the officiating, especially with the playoffs approaching. But teams have to stop complaining, too. They should focus on the game more than officiating.

With Dacin’s loss, SBL standing now has a long jam in the remaining two playoff spots. Dacin and Mars tied at 10-9, Jutai is 10-11, while Taiwan Beer few steps behind at 8-12.

Summary
Jutai 70-65 SINA (Half 34-43)
Jutai – yang Yu-min 16p+6rb+7a, O-Yang Jin-hen 13p, Shin Jin-jan 11p, Wu Dai-hao 9p+7rb+2blk
SINA – Chou Jun-san 15p, Lo Shin-liang 15p

Taiwan Beer 80-79 Dacin (Half 37-42)
TB – Lin Chih-jay 32p+8rb, Chen Shih-nian 14p+7rb+9a, Wu Chih-yuan 12p+10rb
Dacin – Tien Lei 27p+11rb+5a+3blk, Hsu Chi-chao 17p, Chang Chi-feng 16p+9rb

TB handed SINA fourth straight defeat

Led by Lin Chi-jay’s 21 points, Taiwan Beer (7-12) beat SINA 76-68 in consecutive weeks and handed SINA (12-7) its fourth straight loss last night (March 12).

SINA’s season is as dramatic as can be. They opened the season losing three straight before winning the next twelve. Then the 4-game losing streak followed. Fatigue is believed to be SINA’s current problem in the losing streak. SINA also failed to develop their second-unit during the season, riding on veterans like Lo Shin-liang and Chou Jun-san too much.

Summary
Taiwan Beer 76-68 SINA (Half 46-37)
TB – Lin Chih-jay 21p+3s, Chen Shih-nian 16p+6rb+9a+3s, Lee Wei-min 13p, Liao Wei-cheng 12p, Wu Chih-yuan 9p+9rb
SINA – Lo Shing-liang 20p, Chou Jun-san 10p+10rb+9a, Kao Li-min 11p

Dacin beat Mars in intense battle

Lee Fong-yong had season-high 27 points as Dacin beat Mars in a physical and intense battle tonight. Dacin snapped Mars’ three-game winning streak and replaced Mars in the standing as No.3, although they only led by a half game.

The entire game was physical as Dacin (10-8) took advantage at the foul-line, making 27 of 38 free-throws. Mars (10-9) only made 9 out of 12. Mars complained for the officiating throughout the game and almost pulled out of the game in the final minutes. Head coach Chun Chi-mun blasted the officials after the game.

Chen Hsin-an had 24 points in his second game back from military service. Yulon beat Bank of Taiwan 88-74 and swept the season sreries, 4-0.

Summary
Dacin 91-73 Mars (Half 41-34)
Dacin - Lee Fong-yong 27p+9rb, Hsu Chi-chao 22p+3s, Chang Chi-feng 15p+5rb+3s, Tien Lei 10p+11rb+5a
Mars - Yang Che-yi 16p, Chen Huei 14p+7rb+4a, Lee Chi-yi 14p+7rb, Yen Shin-shu 9p+4s

Yulon 88-74 Bank of Taiwan (Half 46-33)
Yulon - Chen Hsin-an 24p, Wu Chih-wei 12p, Chiu Chi-yi 12p
BOT - Yang Chin-min 14p, Ju Yong-hong 14p, Hsu Hao-cheng 10p

Tien Lei lead Dacin to key win over TB

Tien Lei had 26 points and 13 rebounds to record his 10th double-double of the season and led Dacin to a hard-fought victory over Taiwan Beer 98-86. Dacin, who is fighting for a playoff seed, opened up an one and a half game lead over 5th-place Jutai.

First-place Yulon welcomed back Chen Hsin-an, who completed his 12-day military obligation, but Chiu Chi-yi took center stage with a season-high 24 points, including 6 for 7 from three-point range. Chou Shih-yuan also had 21 points to help Yulon to an easy 30 point win.

Summary
Yulon 104-74 Bank of Taiwan (Half 51-46)
Yulon - Chiu Chi-yi 24p(6-7 3PT), Chou Shih-yuan 21p, Tsun Wen-din 17p, Chen Hsin-an 13p
BOT - Ju Yong-hong 14p, Hsu Hao-cheng 12p

Dacin 98-86 Taiwan Beer (Half 44-42)
Dacin - Tien Lei 26p+13rb+5a+4blk, Lee Fong-yong 20p+6rb, Chang Chi-feng 18p+7rb
TB - Lin Chih-jay 20p+6rb+5a, Chen Shih-nian 18p, Lee Wei-min 14p, Hsu Cheng-wen 12p

Yulon clinches playoffs seed by Jutai’s loss

Yen Shin-shu scored 24 points as BCC Mars edged Jutai 95-90 to open up a two-game lead in the postseason race, which sees Mars, Jutai and Dacin fight for two playoffs seeds. With Jutai’s loss, Yulon also became the first team to clinch a playoffs birth.

Second-place SINA was shocked by Taiwan Beer, 98-77, in the first game of the night. Streaky SINA opened the season losing three straight, won the next twelve games, and lost three consecutive games again. However, their second-place looked secured.

Summary
Taiwan Beer 98-77 SINA (Half 43-36)
TB – Lin Chih-jay 28p+10rb+4a, Chen Shih-nian 19p+8rb+7a+3s, Hsu Cheng-wen 15p+6rb, Lee Wei-min 11p
SINA – Chou Jun-san 22p, Lo Shin-liang 19p

Mars 95-90 Jutai (Half 50-35)
Mars – Yen Shin-shu 24p+5a+4s, Lin Jia-huang 19p, Lee Chi-yi 16p+6rb+5a+4s, Yang Che-yi 11p+7rb
Jutai – Yang Yu-ming 29p, Shan Wei-fan 18p, Wu Dai-hao 14p=12rb+3blk, Wu Cheng-dao 15p+6rb

Jutai, Mars get key wins

Jutai and Mars pulled out upset wins on the same day, making the battle for semifinal seeds even more intense. Jutai (9-10) beat Yulon 79-67 for its fourth consecutive victory while Mars (9-8) edged SINA 74-70 to move one game above .500.

At this moment, Jutai, Dacin (8-8) and Mars are battling for the remaining two playoffs seeds.

Yulon and SINA have almost clinched the top two spots, but they haven’t been playing well recently. Yulon was 3-4 in the last 7 games. SINA dropped two straight after its season-high 12-game winning streak.

Chen Hsin-an did not play this week because he is serving a 12-day military obligation. Without Chen, Yulon had trouble executing its half-court offense and trailed Jutai the entire game.

Mars played its best game of the season and showed they simply wanted the win more than SINA, who lost both games this week and looked fatigued due to their age.

Summary
Jutai 79-67 Yulon (Half 46-33)
Jutai – Yang Yu-min 20p, O-Yang Jin-hen 16p+9rb, Shan Wei-fan 14p+9rb, Wu Dai-hao 11p+11rb, Wu Cheng-dao 10p
Yulon – Tsun Wen-din 13p+8rb, Wei Yong-tai 12p, Chou Shih-yuan 12p

Mars 74-70 SINA (Half 40-35)
Mars – Yang Che-yi 21p+6rb, Yen Shin-shu 14p, Lai Kuo-hong 14p, Lin Jia-huang 13p, Lee Chi-yi 12p+7rb
SINA – Chou Jun-san 19p+6a, Liu Yi-hsiang 13p+11rb, Hsiung Jen-jen 13p, Lo Shin-liang 9p+8rb+4s