Saturday, March 17, 2007

'Thank God it's Friday' for Azio, TB


(Azio F/C Chien Jia-hong goes up against Yulon center Tsun Wen-din, photo courtesy of ESPN Taiwan)

It's TGIF -- thank God it's Friday -- for Azio and Taiwan Beer, which came home with an inspiring win Friday night.

Led by forward/center Chien Jia-hong, who had 35 points, 16 rebounds and 7 assists, Azio Eagles routed top-ranked Yulon 117-96 for its third win of the season.

Forward Lin Chih-jay had 17 of his game-high 31 points in the final quarter to go with 13 rebounds as Taiwan Beer beat Videoland Hunters for the first time this season with a 89-79 thriller.

Azio was on fire the whole game and had its best offensive output of the season, shooting 70% from two-point range and made 8 of 17 three-point tries. By this win, Azio will finish at least the same record as the last two years, when it went 3-27 in both seasons. Beating the defending champion will definitely boost their confidence with 10 games left in the season.

Lin Chih-jay exploded for 17 points in the final period and single-handedly turned a tight game into a 17-point lead. TB held off a late VL rally that cut the deficit down to 8 points and beat the Hunters for the first time in four meetings this season.

Azio 117-96 Yulon
Azio: Chien Jia-hong 35p+16rb+7a, Zuo Tsun-kai 18p, Hong Chih-shan 14p+6rb+9a, Chang Yu-lin 14p, James Mao 14p, Wu Jian-long 10p
Yulon: Lee Hsueh-lin 25p+6rb+4a, Tsun Wen-din 16p, Chen Chih-chun 15p, Chen Hsin-an 11p+5rb+5a

TB 89-79 VL
TB: Lin Chih-jay 31p+13rb, Ho Sho-jen 21p
VL: J. Sanders 24p+11rb, Deng An-cheng 11p, Wu Yong-jen 11p