A rout and a close game didn't surprise anyone. What surprised everyone was defending champion Yulon nearly lost its first playoff game in three years and Dacin pounded No.2 seed Taiwan Beer.
Yulon escaped with a 83-77 victory in Game 1 of the SBL first round playoffs while Dacin routed Taiwan Beer 96-73 in a game without TB leading scorer Lin Chi-jay. Yulon and Dacin both led the first round series 1-0.
Chen Chih-chun made a game-clinching 3-pointer with 13.3 seconds left to give Yulon its 10th straight playoff win. However Yulon came out rusty and did not look like a defending champ at all, see-sawing with BOT all game because of its careless defense.
Center Tsun Wen-din had 27 points, including 18 points in the second half as Yulon pulled away, leading by as many as 8 points in the fourth quarter.
However it was easy to see BOT wanted the victory more in the first SBL playoff game in team history. Center Ju Yong-hong had 18 points and 9 rebounds. Forward Yua Yin-li scored 13 points in 16 minutes. But SBL March/April MVP Chien Ming-fu missed potential game-tying 3-pointers in the last minute, when BOT rallied to cut the deficit to three points.
In the most anticipated matchup, the absence of Lin Chi-jay, who missed the game because of a sprained left ankle, virtually decided the outcome. Dacin used a 13-0 run in the opening quarter to open up the game and never looked back.
Games 2s will be played tomorrow.
Game 1: Dacin 96-73 TB (61-31) Dacin 1-0
Dacin: Chang Chi-feng 22p, Wang Chih-chun 17p(5-8 3PT), Tien Lei 15p+12rb, Chen Tse-wei 15p+8rb, Lin Yi-huei 11p
TB: Shan Wei-fan 15p, Pan Jen-der 10p, Lin Chi-jay DNP
Game 1: Yulon 83-77 BOT (40-38) Yulon 1-0
Yulon: Tsun Wen-din 27p+10rb, Chen Chih-chun 14p(4-6 3PT), Lee Hsueh-lin 14p+8rb, Wu Chih-wei 10p
BOT: Ju Yong-hong 18p+9rb, Wu Yong-jen 15p+6rb+5a, Yua Yin-li 13p