SBL Week 4 MVP: Chen Hsin-an

Chen Hsin-an, who led Yulon Dinos to a 3-0 week, was voted SBL Week 4 MVP Tuesday. Chen averaged 23 points per game in the week and had 36 in the win over Taiwan Beer.

(Chen Hsin-an shot over TB defense, photo: ESPN Taiwan)

SBL Weekly MVP:
Week 4: Chen Hsin-an(Yulon)
Week 3: Lo Shin-liang(TB)
Week 2: Jonathan Sanders(VL)
Week 1: Lin Chih-jay(TB)

Stats Leaders:
Scoring
1. Tien Lei(Dacin) 26.0
2. Jonathan Sanders(VL) 24.6
3. Chien Jia-hong(Azio) 22.5
4. Lin Chih-jay(TB) 21.8
5. Ho Sho-jen(TB) 19.0

Rebounding
1. Jonathan Sanders(VL) 14.1
2. Tien Lei(Dacin) 10.6
3. Lin Chih-jay(TB) 8.4
4. Delvin Thomas(ETSN) 8.3
5. Tsun Wen-din(Yulon) 7.8

Assists
1. Su Yi-chieh(Dacin) 4.88
2. Lin Chih-jay(TB) 4.5
3. Lee Hsueh-lin(Yulon) 4.5
4. Wang Chih-chun(Dacin) 4.0
5. Chen Shih-nian(TB) 3.88

Blocks
1. Delvin Thomas(ETSN) 2.67
2. Yua Ying-li(BOT) 1.75
2. Tsun Wen-din(Yulon) 1.75
4. Cheng Jen-wei(ETSN) 1.29
5. Tien Lei(Dacin) 1.25

Steals
1. Lee Wei-min(VL) 2.12
2. Su Yi-chieh(Dacin) 1.88
3. Chien Jia-hong(Azio) 1.75
3. Chou Shih-yuan(Yulon) 1.75
5. Lee Hsueh-lin(Yulon) 1.67

Tien Lei, Dacin handed VL first loss

(TB head coach Yen Jia-hua protested for a controversial call after a loss to Yulon, photo coutesy of ESPN Taiwan)

Tien Lei scored 24 of his 26 points in the second half as Dacin Tigers overcame a double-digit deficit and upset Videoland 83-70 Sunday, snapping VL's league-high seven-game winning streak.

Dacin's second-year point guard Su Yi-chieh added 16 points, including 10 in the final period, 7 rebounds and 4 assists on his 20th birthday. Dacin was back to .500 with four wins and 4 losses while Videoland was 7-1.

Dacin trailed 45-32 at the half but closed the third quarter with a 9-0 run to cut the deficit to four. Chang Chi-feng added 15 points, 6 boards and 6 assists in the game. Lin Yi-huei had 15.

VL forward Jonathan Sanders failed to reach double-double for the first time, collecting 20 points and 7 rebounds. Yang Che-yi had 16 and Lee Wei-min had 12. Lee Chi-yi added 10 points.

Yulon 84-79 Taiwan Beer
Chen Hsin-an exploded for his season-high 36 points as Yulon edged Taiwan Beer 84-79 with a little help from the referees for its six straight win after a 0-2 start.

Tsun Wen-din, who had 19 points, 12 rebounds and three block in the game, completed a three-point play to put Yulon on top 80-77 with 29.8 seconds to go. TB point guard Hsu Hao-cheng was whistled for a 5-second violation in the next play while inbounding the ball with 23.4 seconds remaining.

It was obvious that Hsu took less than four seconds to inbound the ball. The controvercial call literally eliminate TB's chance for its last shot.

Chen Hsin-an shot 15-of-23, which was an unusual for him this season. Liu Shen-yao added 11.

Taiwan Beer almost erased a 12-point halftime deficit and pulled out a comeback victory before the 5-second violation call. Center Wu Chih-yuan led with 17 points and 12 rebounds. Lin Chih-jay also had a double-double with 14 and 12. Lo Shin-liang had 15 while Ho Sho-jen added 14.

ETSN 99-85 Azio
Azio Eagles lost its eighth straight game.
ETSN: Yang Yu-min 22p+6a, D. Thomas 16p, Wu Jia-long 16p, Cheng Jen-wei 11p+7rb, Huang Bao-tse 10p
Azio: Chien Jia-hong 20p+9rb, Hong Chih-shan 12p+11rb, Huang Chi-feng 11p

Chien made peace with Chang

Azio Eagles forward/center Chien Jia-hong, who was reactivated Saturday after serving a four-game suspension for starting a bench-clearing brawl on Jan. 13, made peace with Dacin guard Chang Chi-feng after the two teams met again.

Four players and an assistant coach were suspended and fined after the worst brawl in SBL history took place in the fourth quarter of the Dacin-Azio game Jan. 13. Chien made a punch to Chang Chi-feng to start the brawl.

Chien said he thought a lot during the last two weeks and regretted for what he has done that day on the court, adding that he will focus on the game in the future.

Chien scored 20 points in his first game back but couldn't prevent Azio from dropping its seven straight game.

(Photo: Chien and Chang, courtesy of UDN.com)

Sanders powers Videoland past Taiwan Beer

Jonathan Sanders had 30 points and 15 rebounds as Videoland Hunters beat Taiwan Beer 99-86 Saturday in a matchup of the league's two top teams and cruised to its franchise-best seven-game winning streak.

Sanders scored 11 of his 30 points in the first quarter and quickly led VL to a double-digit lead as Hunters led 47-29 at halftime. VL led by as many as 23 points in the second half and shot 38-of-66 in the game.

TB didn't push for a final surge until the final period, when it made 8 threes to make the ballgame interesting again. But VL prevailed.

"Is Jonathan Sander really shorter than 200cm?" TB head coach Yen Jia-hua questioned Sanders' height in the post-game conference. The SBL has a 200cm(6-7) import height limit.

For all I know, Jonathan Sanders is a player who can play, loves to play and make his teammates to enjoy play ball again, which was not the case last year. Does it make a difference if he is 180cm(5-11) tall? 197cm(6-5 1/2)? 203cm(6-8)?

Anyway, Yen's challenge sounds absurd to me. And actually it rang my bell about the old CBA days when teams would repeatedly question import players' height if they were embarrassed by those players or didn't have a clue about defending them.

Yang Che-yi had 17 points for VL, which outrebounded TB 40-27, while Lee Chi-yi had 10 and 7. Lin Tsun-ching surprised with a 12-point game on 5-of-6 shooting.

Taiwan Beer, which saw its three-game winning streak snapped, was led by Lin Chih-jay's 27 points and 8 boards. Ho Sho-jen added 26.

Dacin 92-79 Azio
Dacin: Su Yi-chieh 21p, Tien Lei 20p+12rb+4a, Yen Jia-wei 16p, Lin Yi-huei 10p
Azio: Chien Jia-hong 20p, Chang Yu-lin 16p, Chou Tse-hua 13p+5a

Yulon 88-78 BOT
Yulon: Chang Yi-wen 11p, Liu Shen-yao 11p, Chou Shih-yuan 11p
BOT: Chen Shun-hsiang 29p, Yang Chin-min 10p+7rb

SBL showtime mix

A highlight mix of the SBL action last week.

Thomas' return and defense led ETSN to second win

Delvin Thomas, who injured his knee in the season opener, returned after two weeks and helped ETSN to an easy 92-66 victory, its second win of the season, over Bank of Taiwan Friday with his defense. In the other game, Tsun Wen-din and Chen Hsin-an combined for 53 points as Yulon held off Dacin's furious rally with a 94-93 win.

Thomas scored only 4 points, shooting 1-of-4 from the field and 2-of-6 from the line, but dominated the paint with his tenacious defense. With his long arms and mobility, Thomas blocked four shots and altered many others, limited BOT to a miserable 20-of-63 shooting.

ETSN was led by Cheng Jen-wei's 20 points and 10 rebounds and Huang Bao-tse's season-high 20 points in the team's best game of the young season. Yang Yu-min had 14 points and 4 steals while Wu jia-long had 12.

Wang Shin-kai led BOT with 18 points. Chen Shun-hsiang, who has seen quite an improvement during the past two weeks coming off the bench, had another good game of 15 and 6.

Yulon PG Lee Hsueh-lin made a deciding three with 52 seconds to go and Tien Lei missed his last shot, a driving layup, as Yulon continued to own the Tigers, beating Dacin for the fourth straight time.

Lee's three increased Yulon's lead to three before Chang Chi-feng made a layup and cut Dacin's deficit to one. Tsun Wen-din missed both free-throws and gave Dacin the last chance to pull out a win, but Tien Lei was unable to convert his driving layup before the final horn.

Tsun had 29 points, 6 rebounds and season-high 11 assists. Chen Hsin-an finally shook off his shooting slump and scored 24 points on 8-of-15 shooting. Chou Shih-yuan added 20. Lee Hsueh-lin had 9 points to go with 4 rebounds and 5 steals.

Tien Lei had 35 points, 11 boards and 5 assists to pace Dacin, which dropped to 2-4. Chang Chi-feng had 17 and Lin Yi-huei had 16. PG Su Yi-chieh had 10 points and 9 assists.

(Photo: Tien Lei, courtesy of ESPN Taiwan)

Kick and punch

These players just don't learn. In a Jan. 21 game between Yulon and ETSN, Yulon guard Lee Hsueh-lin first kicked ETSN forward Hsiao Yuan-chan in the back after both of them fell to the baseline. Then Hsiao, while sitting on the ground, punched back and hit Lee in the eye. Both were ejected and fined for NT$ 10,000.

What surprised me the most was the announcement of the SBL committee two days later. Both players were not suspended. And you know, with the brawl between Azio and Dacin resulted in multi-players suspension, there's no way a player who punched was not suspended.

Anyway, two brawls in 10 days was not a good news to the league at all. If the SBL doesn't do something about the officiating, negative image and these players still don't know how to respect the game and their opponents, this league will be in deep troubel.

SBL Week 3 MVP: Lo Shin-liang

(TB guard Lo Shin-liang, Photo:ESPN Taiwan)

35 years-old veteran Lo Shin-liang, who signed with Taiwan Beer last summer after failing to reach agreement with his former team YMY(now Azio,) was named SBL Week 3 MVP.

Lo averaged 19 points in two games last week, leading TB to victories in both games with his clutch three-point shooting, and edged out Videoland import Jonathan Sanders by one point (34-33) in the media voting.

SBL Weekly MVP:
Week 3: Lo Shin-liang(TB)
Week 2: Jonathan Sanders(VL)
Week 1: Lin Chih-jay(TB)

Late run helps TB defeat Dacin

(TB came from behind to beat Dacin, photo: ESPN Taiwan)

Taiwan Beer gave a new meaning to the word "up-and-down" Sunday. The Beermen first led by as many as 14 in the first half, and trailed by 11 in the fourth period before closing the game with an unanswered 10-0 rally for a 92-89 victory over Dacin Tigers.

Lo Shin-liang's consecutive threes sparked TB for the final run. Ho Sho-jen had two fastbreak layups as Taiwan Beer came from behind and silence Tigers fans. Dacin had a final shot with 6 seconds to go but Tien Lei fumbled the ball away.

Lin Chih-jay almost had a triple-double, tallying 20 points, 10 rebounds and 8 assists. Lo Shin-liang had 19 points, shooting 5-of-8 from threes. Ho Sho-jen added 18. Center Wu Chih-yuan had 12 and 7.

Dacin was led by Yao Jun-jay, who was 11-of-14 in the game, came from nowhere and scored 12 of his career-high 23 points in the third quarter and helped Dacin regain the momentum midway through the final period when it led by 11.

Chang Chi-feng had 17 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists. Tien followed with 13 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assist. Su Yi-chieh turned in 12 point, 7 boards and 6 assists. Lin Yi-huei added 13.

Dacin guard Wang Chih-chun sprained his ankle and was expected to be out for two weeks, which is a devastating blow to lowly Tigers (2-3).

Videoland 114-97 BOT
Jonathan Sanders had 37 points and 20 rebounds, his second 20-20 game in Taiwan, as Videoland cruised to a perfect 6-0 record in the first round robin.

VL - Sanders 37p+20rb, Yang Che-yi 18, Lee Chi-yi 16, Lai Kuo-hong 12, Lee Wei-min 12
BOT - Chen Shun-hsiang 21, Chien Ming-fu 17p+6a, Hsu Chi-chan 15p

Yulon 80-78 ETSN
A minor confrontation broke out in the third quarter as Yulon guard Lee Hsueh-lin and ETSN forward Hsiao Yuan-chan were both ejected. Yulon forward Chou Hong-yu, who left the bench area, was also ejected.

Yulon - Tsun Wen-din 28p+9rb+4a+3blk, Chou Shih-yuan 19, Chen Hsin-an 13p+10rb
ETSN - Yang Yu-min 30p(11-17 FG), Huang Bao-tse 14p, Shin Jin-jan 11p

Videoland remains undefeated after routing Dacin

Videoland Hunters limited SBL leading scorer Tien Lei to 7 points in the first half and led from start to finish en route to a 87-72 win over the Tigers Saturday. VL raced to a 5-0 start and remained the only undefeated team.

Jonathan Sanders led Hunters once again with 21 and 12 rebounds, followed by Yang Che-yi's 18. Veteran Lai Kuo-hong had 12 points in 10 minutes while Lee Wei-min added 10.

Tien Lei still finished 24 points and 15 boards but shot only 10-of-28 in the game. Dacin guard Wang Chih-chun had 23 points. CHang Chi-feng had 12.

On Friday, ETSN snapped its four-game losing streak after beating Azio, which became the only team without a win.

Jan. 20
VL 87-72 Dacin

BOT 96-83 ETSN
BOT - Yang Chin-min 17p, Yua Ying-li 16p+6rb+6a, Lin Chun-feng 12p+9rb, Chen Shun-hsiang 12p, Hsu Chi-chan 12p
ETSN - O-Yang Jin-hen 19p+8rb, Shin Jin-jan 14p

Yulon 95-75 Azio
Yulon - Chou Shih-yuan 31p, Wu Chih-wei 14p, Lee Hsueh-lin 11p+8a
Azio - Hsu Shi-chin 25p, Chen Shi-jay 11p

Jan. 19
TB 92-90 BOT
TB - Lin Chih-jay 28p+8rb+4a, Ho Sho-jen 20p+6rb, Lo Shin-liang 19p, Ha Hsiao-yuan 10p
BOT - Chien Ming-fu 22p+6a, Chen Shun-hsiang 17p, Yua Ying-li 15p

ETSN 87-79 Azio
ETSN - Yang Yu-min 25p, Hsiao Yuan-chan 15p+6rb, Cheng Jen-wei 12p, Wu Jia-long 11p
Azio - Chang Yu-lin 21p, Hong Chih-shan 12p, Wu Jian-long 10p+11rb+6a, James Mao 6p+7rb

Illogical SBL import-hiring system

ETSN forward Delvin Thomas(Photo: ESPN Taiwan)

Is it just me or anyone thinks that the import-hiring system of the SBL is incredibly illogical?

Starting from this season, the SBL allows non-playoff teams, which means teams rank from No. 5-7 in the regular season standing, to hire an import player. However, teams can choose not to hire any import.

Which was why Videoland brought in Jonathan Sanders and ETSN signed Delvin Thomas. Azio, the last-placed team, did not sign any because it did not want to spend more money on player salary.

On the contrary, top four teams are prohibited from signing imports.

Here comes the question. The SBL stated that if team A, which hires an import player, advances to the playoff, it's not allowed to sign import players next season.

Which means if Jonathan Sanders helps Videoland make the postseason this year, he will be out of job next year. He has to sign with another non-playoff team or play elsewhere. Does this make sense?

What will you do if you were Sanders? Play as hard as you can and help your team make the playoffs? Then you will be unemployed next year. Play halfheartedly and hope your team does NOT make the postseason so you can stay with the team? Chances are that you have been fired by then because you were not productive.

The SBL committee should work out a better and logical import-hiring system than the current one. And all SBL teams, not just the non-playoff teams, should consider bringing in more imports because it will benefit the league, the players, the teams and Taiwanese basketball.

Otherwise Taiwanese basketball players will not be able to develop their skills and handle physical play in international competitions.

SBL leaders thru Jan. 16

Points
Tien Lei 30.0
J. Sanders 22.3
Wang Chih-chun 21.3
Lin Chih-jay 21.3
Chien Jia-hong 21.0

Rebounds
J. Sanders 14.8
Tien Lei 10.7
D. Thomas 10.0
Chien Jia-hong 9.0
Lin Chih-jay 7.8

Assists
Wang Chih-chun 5.0
Chen Shih-nian 4.75
Su Yi-chieh 4.67
Lin Chih-jay 4.0
Lee Hsueh-lin 4.0

Blocks
Tien Lei 2.33
D. Thomas 2.0
Yua Ying-li 1.67

Steals
Chou Shih-yuan 3.67
Chien Jia-hong 2.50
Su Yi-chieh 2.33
Wang Chih-chun 2.0
Lee Wei-min 2.0
Tsun Wen-din 2.0
Lee Hsueh-lin 2.0

SBL Week 2 MVP: Jonathan Sanders

American forward Jonathan Sanders, who led Videoland to a 3-0 week, was named SBL Week 2 MVP Tuesday. Sanders is averaging 22.3 points and 14.8 rebounds for the season, ranking 2nd in scoring and first in rebounding. Sanders exploded for 22 points and 20 rebounds, the first 20-20 gamee in SBL this season, in the win over Azio last week.

The St. Mary's graduate received 49 points in the media voting. Taiwan Beer forward Ho Sho-jen was second with 10 points while Tien Lei of Dacin received 8 points.

Sanders keeps VL rolling

American import Jonathan Sanders had his first 20-20 game in Taiwan Sunday night, tallying 22 points and 20 rebounds, and helped Videoland Hunters rout Azio Eagles 95-71 for its fourth straight win and a 4-0 start.

Videoland, a team out of playoffs last season, again used a strong third quarter to seal the game, outscoring Azio 30-15 in the period. Clinging on a four-point lead at halftime, VL opened the second half with a 16-3 run and never looked back.

Sanders, who was 8 for 10 from the field and 6 for 9 from the free-throw line, was obvious the main reason that VL became a different team. He was unselfish and always encouraged his teammates on the court. When the going got tough, he was also the No.1 option for VL to handle the ball and go one-on-one.

Lee Chi-yi had 20 point, 9 rebounds and three blocks for the Hunters, which dug itself a big hole by committing 27 turnovers as a team. Yang Che-yi added 14.

Azio, which was still winless after four games, was led by James Mao, who had 12 points, 6 boards and 4 steals. Zuo Tsun-kai and Chang yu-lin had 10 points each.

Taiwan Beer 77-70 ETSN
Taiwan Beer handed ETSN its third straight loss as new ETSN head coach Chiu Da-tsun, an assistant with TB last season, failed to pull out a win against his former team.

TB forward Ho Sho-jen had 21 points and center Ha Hsiao-yuan added 11 points and 7 rebounds in the 77-70 victory. Chen Shih-nian had 11 points. TB leading scorer Lin Chih-jay had an off night but still turned in 8 points, 10 rebounds and four assists.

Yang Yu-min led ETSN with 25 points. Wu Jun-hsiung had 21 while Wu Jia-long had 14.

Yulon 93-76 Bank of Taiwan
Five players scored in double-digit as three-time defending champion Yulon snapped a two-game losing streak by defeating BOT 93-76 Sunday.

Chou Shih-yuan led Yulon, which opened the game with a 15-0 run, with 17 points. Chang Yi-wen had 14 points and 7 rebounds. Hsu Wei-shen had 14. Center Tsun Wen-din added 12 points and 9 boards. Wei Yong-tai had 12 and 6.

Star forward Chen Hsin-an turned in a subpar performance, scoring only three points on 1 for 4 shooting in 12 minutes. Chen's head was not in the game and was benched the whole second half.

Yua Ying-li had 19 points and three blocks for BOT, whose 2-game winning streak was stopped. Rookie forward Chang Jun-hsuan had 13 points.

Videoland guns down TB for third straight win

Helped by two threes from Lee Wei-min in the last two minutes and 22 points and 12 rebounds from Jonathan Sanders, Videoland Hunters beat Taiwan Beer 89-85 for its third consecutive win and the first season-opening three-game winning streak.

VL's tenacious defense locked down TB in the second half and bounced back from an eight-point halftime deficit for the win. Yang Che-yi scored 22 points while Lee Chi-yi had 18.

Ho Sho-jen and Lin Chih-jay scored 23 apaiece for TB, which lost for the first time in three games. Lin Kuan-lun had 16.

BOT 84-81 Azio
Bank of Taiwan forward Yua Ying-li completed a three-point play with 6.7 seconds remaining to help BOT edge Azio 84-81 for the first 2-0 start in team SBL history. Yua only had 7 points in the game but his most important field goal made the difference.

BOT rookie Chang Jun-hsuan also had a perfect night, making all seven field goal attempts and scoring 16 points for the winner. Yang Chin-min scored team-high 19 points. Lin Chun-feng had 12.

Without leading scorer Chien Jia-hong, who was suspended four games for punching and starting the bench-clearing brawl in the game vs. Dacin Friday night, Azio still entered the game with tremendous confidence and almost won the game. But Zuo Tsun-lai's traveling violation with 40 seconds to go came at the worst time.

Hong Chih-shan's 19 topped Azio, which also received 18 points from Chang Yu-lin and 10 points apeice from Kao Li-min and rookie Wu Jian-long.

Dacin 109-83 ETSN
Wang Chih-chun scored career-high 34 points, making five threes and 11 for 13 from the foul line, as Dacin routed ETSN less than 24 hours after the brawl Friday. Tien Lei had 24 points and 9 boards.

Trailing by almost 20 after three quarters, ETSN made the entire 4th quarter a free-throw competition by fouling Dacin players in almost every possession. Dacin PG Su Yi-chieh scored 17 of his 23 points from the charity stripe and Dacin was 45 for 49 at the foul line in the game.

ETSN, which will lost import Delvin Thomas for another two weeks, was led by Wu Jia-long's 21 points. Cheng Jen-wei had 17. O-Yang Jin-hen had 15 while Yang Yu-min scored 14.

Bench-clearing brawl in dark day for SBL

Four players and an assistant coach were suspended and fined after the worst brawl in SBL history took place in the fourth quarter of the Dacin vs. Azio game Friday.

Azio forward Chien Jia-hong, who started the bench-clearing brawl by punching Dacin guard Chang Chi-feng, was handed a four-game suspension and a NT$ 50,000 fine. Liu Yi-hsiang of Azio, Dacin's Chen Tse-wei and Yao Jun-jay were suspended for two games and fined NT$ 20,000 each. Dacin assistant Fan Gun-hsiang was suspended two games.

CTBA also announced that three referees of the game will serve a three-week suspension for failing to keep the game in check.

The game ended up with 4-on-4 during the last 1 minute and 14 seconds as a total of 16 players from both teams were ejected. Dacin won the game 90-79 with Tien Lei scoring a game-high 32 points to go with 10 rebounds.

Wang Chih-chun had 16 points, 11 boards and 8 assists for Dacin. Lin Yi-huei and Yao Jun-jay had 13 each.

Chien Jia-hong led Azio with 26 points and 8 rebounds. Hong Chih-shan scored 16.

In the second game, Videoland Hunters routed Yulon 80-60 to go 2-0 with the help from Jonathan Sanders, who had 19 points, 17 rebounds and 4 assists. Defending champ Yulon suffered the first season-opening losing streak by dropping 0-2.

Yang Che-yi had 15 and Chen Huei had 14 for Videoland, which outrebounded Yulon 47-33. Chen Hsin-an scored 14 to pace the Dinos, which only got four points from starting center Tsun Wen-din.

Worst brawl in SBL history

With less than 2 minutes remaining, Azio forward Chien Jia-hong started a bench-clearing brawl in a game vs. Dacin Construction Jan. 12. The game ended up with 4-on-4 as 16 players from both teams were ejected. Fine and suspensions are pending.

SBL Week 1 MVP: Lin Chih-jay

Taiwan Beer forward Lin Chih-jay was named MVP of the week for the opening week of the 2006-07 SBL season Tuesday. Lin averaged 27.7 points, 7 rebounds and 4.5 assists in two games.

Lin received 33 points to edge out Videoland forward Jonathan Sanders, who had 30 points in the voting. Taiwan Beer guard Lo Shin-liang was third with 28 points.

SBL 06-07 opening week video mix

Bank of Taiwan forward Hsu Chih-chan made a (almost) 94-foot basket in the Bank of Taiwan vs. Taiwan Beer pre-season game of the Super Basketball League (SBL) of Taiwan.



Videoland forward Jonathan Sanders completed a Jordanesque move under the basket in a win over ETSN Antelopes Jan. 7. Sanders had 26 points in the SBL season opener.

Taiwan Young Women won bronze in Asian Championship

This is an old news but...better late than never. Taiwan Young Women NT finished for third-place in the Asian Young Women Championship, which was held in Singapore from Dec. 20-27, 2006.

China and Japan qualified for the FIBA U21 Women's World Championship, which will take place in Moscow, Russia in June.

Game Results:
Preliminary
Taiwan 102-52 India
Taiwan 59-61 Korea
Taiwan 48-57 China
Taiwan 109-37 Thailand
Taiwan 42-61 Japan

Playoffs
Taiwan 57-60 Japan
Taiwan 59-57 Korea

Placing:
Level I
1. China
2. Japan
3. Taiwan
4. Korea
5. India
6. Thailand

Level II
1. Singapore
2. Uzbekistan
3. Sri Lanka
4. Indonesia

Veteran Lo led TB to a 2-0 start

(Photo credit: ESPN Taiwan)

Taiwan Beer shooting guard Lo Shin-liang proved his worth as a veteran. The 35 year-old scored 28 points for his new team in a 101-95 victory over Azio and led TB to a 2-0 start in the opening week of the 2006-07 SBL season.

Bank of Taiwan shocked everyone once again by upsetting Dacin 92-91 and recorded an unthinkable 4-game winning streak in season openers, which means it won every season opener during the past four years.

Yang Chin-min almost let the victory slip away by missing both free-throws with 12.3 seconds to go and BOT leading by one, but Dacin ended its last two possessions with turnovers. Forward Lin Chun-feng, who led BOT with 22 points, was 9-for-13 from the field and 4-for-4 from the charity stripe.

In the first game of the day, Jonathan Sanders had 26 points, 10 boards and 3 assists and led Videoland to a 91-81 win over ETSN. ETSN forward Delvin Thomas had 20 and 10 but injured his knee. His status was unclear.

TB 101-95 Azio
TB - Lo Shin-liang 28p, Lin Chih-jay 21p+7rb, Ho Sho-jen 18p
Azio - Hsu Shi-chin 18p, Chang Yu-lin 18p, Chien Jia-hong 16p+10rb

BOT 92-91 Dacin
BOT - Lin Chun-feng 22p, Yua Yin-li 20p+8rb, Chien Ming-fu 15p, Yang Chin-min 12p
Dacin - Tien Lei 34p+13rb, Chang Chi-feng 20p, Wang Chih-chun 14p

VL 91-81 ETSN
VL - Jonathan Sanders 26p+10rb+3a
ETSN - Delvin Thomas 20p+10rb

Taiwan Beer upset Yulon in opening game

Led by Lin Chih-jay's 33 points and 7 rebounds, Taiwan Beer made three 3-pointers in overtime to upset defending champion Yulon in the opening game of 2006-07 SBL regular season, snapping Yulon's three-game winning streak in season openers.

Lo Shin-liang, a 35 years-old veteran who came to Taiwan Beer from Azio (formerly YMY, ) made a game-deciding three to increase TB's lead to six points with 25.9 seconds remaining in overtime. Lo only scored five in his first game in TB uniform but his big-game experience obviously helped the new team.

Reigning SBL scoring leader Lin Chih-jay outscored his counterpart Chen Hsin-an 33 to 13, making 6 of 13 three-point tries and pulling down 7 boards. TB point guard Chen Shih-nian had 16 points and 8 rebounds while Ho Sho-jen added 12.

Taiwan Beer, which trailed by as many as 12 in the second half, closed the regulation with a 14-4 run to tie the score 70 all.

Yulon, which received their championship rings prior to the game, did not play like the defending champion. The Dinos made 2 of 17 from threes and had many mental lapses in its defense to allow TB come from behind.

Tsun Wen-din led Yulon with 21 points and 6 boards. Lee Hsueh-lin had 17. Chou Hong-yu had 14. Chen Hsin-an turned in 13 points and 8 rebounds in a mediocre game.

2006-07 SBL schedule

Jan. 6
1800 TB-Yulon

Jan. 7
1500 ETSN-VL
1700 Dacin-BOT
1900 Azio-TB

Jan. 12
1830 Azio-Dacin
2030 Yulon-VL

Jan. 13
1500 Dacin-ETSN
1700 VL-TB
1900 BOT-Azio

Jan. 14
1500 TB-ETSN
1700 Yulon-BOT
1900 Azio-VL

Jan. 19
1830 BOT-TB
2030 ETSN-Azio

Jan. 20
1500 Dacin-VL
1700 BOT-ETSN
1900 Azio-Yulon

Jan. 21
1500 TB-Dacin
1700 VL-BOT
1900 ETSN-Yulon

Jan. 26
1830 Yulon-Dacin
2030 BOT-ETSN

Jan. 27
1500 VL-TB
1700 Dacin-Azio
1900 Yulon-BOT

Jan. 28
1500 VL-Dacin
1700 ETSN-Azio
1900 TB-Yulon

Feb. 2
1830 Azio-Yulon
2030 BOT-TB

Feb. 3
1500 Dacin-ETSN
1700 Yulon-VL
1900 TB-Azio

Feb. 4
1500 VL-BOT
1700 ETSN-TB
1900 Dacin-Yulon

Feb. 9
1830 VL-ETSN
2030 TB-Dacin

Feb. 10
1500 Azio-VL
1700 Dacin-BOT
1900 ETSN-Yulon

Feb. 11
1500 BOT-Azio
1700 TB-ETSN
1900 Yulon-Dacin

(Chinese New Year break)

Feb. 23
1830 Yulon-VL
2030 TB-Azio

Feb. 24
1500 ETSN-Dacin
1700 Azio-BOT
1900 VL-TB

Feb. 25
1900 All-Star Game

Mar. 2
1830 BOT-ETSN
2030 Dacin-Azio

Mar. 3
1500 ETSN-VL
1700 Azio-Yulon
1900 TB-BOT

Mar. 4
1500 VL-Azio
1700 Yulon-TB
1900 BOT-Dacin

Mar. 9
1830 ETSN-Yulon
2030 VL-Dacin

Mar. 10
1500 Yulon-BOT
1700 Dacin-TB
1900 Azio-ETSN

Mar. 11
1500 BOT-VL
1700 TB-Azio
1900 Yulon-Dacin

Mar. 16
1830 TB-VL
2030 Yulon-Azio

Mar. 17
1500 ETSN-TB
1700 BOT-Dacin
1900 VL-Yulon

Mar. 18
1500 TB-BOT
1700 Dacin-Azio
1900 ETSN-VL

(A two-week break due to schedule conflict with the university league.)

Apr. 6
1830 Dacin-ETSN
2030 Azio-BOT

Apr. 7
1500 ETSN-Yulon
1700 BOT-VL
1900 TB-Dacin

Apr. 8
1500 VL-Azio
1700 BOT-ETSN
1900 Yulon-TB

Apr. 13
1830 Dacin-VL
2030 TB-BOT

Apr. 14
1500 ETSN-Azio
1700 BOT-Yulon
1900 VL-TB

Apr. 15
1500 BOT-ETSN
1700 Azio-VL
1900 Yulon-Dacin

Apr. 20
1830 Azio-Yulon
2030 ETSN-TB

Apr. 21
1500 BOT-Azio
1700 Dacin-VL
1900 Yulon-ETSN

Apr. 22
1500 VL-BOT
1700 ETSN-Azio
1900 TB-Dacin

(Another bye week.)

May 4
1830 Dacin-ETSN
2030 Yulon-BOT

May 5
1500 Azio-Dacin
1700 Yulon-TB
1900 ETSN-VL

May 6
1500 Dacin-BOT
1700 TB-Azio
1900 VL-Yulon

End of regular season.
Playoffs: May 11 - June 3.

==

Notes:

-- Games from Jan. 6 - Mar. 18 will be played at the Taipei Physical Education College (TPEC) Gymnasium. (5 Dunhwa North Rd., Taipei City)
-- Games from Apr. 6 - Apr. 15 will be played at the Sinjhuang Gymnasium. (75, Chunghwa Rd., -- Sinjhuang City, Taipei County)
-- Games from Apr. 20 - Apr. 22 will be played at the Miaoli Arena. (1121 Kuohwa Rd., Miaoli City)
-- Games from May 4 - May 6 will be played at the National Cheng-kung University Gymnasium. (1 University Rd., Tainan City)
-- All Playoff games will be played at the TPEC Gym.
-- Ticket information: http://www.ticket.com.tw/

Second-year forward Cheng shot down Yulon in last exhibition game

ETSN's second-year forward Cheng Jen-wei scored game-high 23 points, shooting 6 of 10 from the three-point line, and helped ETSN to a 81-75 victory in the last SBL exhibition game Tuesday. ETSN won both of its warmup games.

ETSN import Delvin Thomas had another brilliant game, tallying 11 points and 15 boards in just 21 minutes. Center-forward Hsiao Yuan-chan had 13 and 5.

Defending champ Yulon was led by Chou Shih-yuan and Chiu Chi-yi, who scored 15 respectively. Center Tsun Wen-din had 13 points and 11 rebounds while Chen Hsin-an turned in 11 points and pulled down 7 boards.

The 2006-07 SBL season, which was pushed back due to the Doha Asian Games, will tip-off on Saturday with a rematch of last season's Finals as Yulon meets Taiwan Beer in the opening game.

Sanders led VL to another exhibition win

Jonathan Sanders had 16 points and 11 rebounds in Videoland's 89-75 win over Taiwan Beer Monday night. Sanders' consecutive double-double performances helped VL to a pair of exhibition victories and gave the 6-th place team a promising outlook of the upcoming regular season.

Newcomers Wu Yong-jen (from BOT) and Deng An-cheng (from Dacin) each had 11 for VL. Reigning SBL scoring leader Lin Chih-jay had 19 points and 19 rebounds for Taiwan Beer, which also received 12 points and 8 boards from veteran Lo Shing-liang, who left Azio (former YMY) after last season.

Chen Hsin-an had 15 points and 6 rebounds as defending beat Bank of Taiwan 93-87. Chou Shih-yuan had 14 points, Tsun Wen-din 12 points and Chang Yi-wen had 11 points and 10 rebounds for th winner.

BOT was led by Yang Chin-min's 18 points. Yua Ying-li and Chuan Hsiao-wen scored 17 apiece.

The 2006-07 SBL regular season will tip off Jan. 6 in Taipei.

Thomas, Sanders shine in SBL exhibition games

Dec. 30
Dacin 94-84 Azio (Tien Lei 20p, Wang Chih-chun 19p ; Chien Jia-hong 31p, Chang Yu-lin 15p)
TB 93-88 BOT (Lin Chih-jay 30p+10rb, Wu Chih-yuan 15p+14rb ; Chang Bo-shen 21p, Yang Chin-min 20p)

Dec. 31
VL 85-72 Azio (Lee Wei-min 16p, Jonathan Sanders 14p+13rb in 22 min, Lai Kuo-hong 12p ; Chien Jia-hong 17p, Wu Jian-long 12p)
ETSN 92-81 Dacin (Delvin Thomas 23p+8rb+3s+3blk, Wu Jia-long 19p, Yang Yu-min 17p ; Wang Chih-chun 27p, Chang Chi-feng 12p, Tien Lei 11p)