Week 13 MVP: Shawn Hawkins

Correction: The Week 11 MVP should be Tien Lei rather than Jon Sanders. Sanders was the Week 12 MVP. My bad...

KKL import Shawn Hawkins was named Week 13 MVP after averaging 29.7 points and 11.7 rebounds for the week and a season-high 42 points outburst.

Hawkins currently leads the league in scoring with 25.5 points per game to go with 11.1 rebounds.

Hawkins received 21 points in the media poll, beating out Taiwan Mobile import Alexus Foyle by one point.

2010 SBL Weekly MVPs
Week 13: Shawn Hawkins, KKL
Week 12: Jonathan Sanders, PY
Week 12: Tien Lei, Dacin
Week 10: Jonathan Sanders, PY
Week 9: Chen Shun-hsiang, BOT
Week 8: Chen Chih-chung, Yulon
Week 7: Derek Stribling, TB
Week 6: Jonathan Sanders, PY
Week 5: Alexus Foyle, TM
Week 4: Shawn Hawkins, KKL
Week 3: Chang Chih-feng, Dacin
Week 2: Tseng Wen-ting, Yulon
Week 1: Jonathan Sanders, PY

SBL stats leaders (thru April 19)

Scoring
1. Shawn Hawkins, KKL 25.5
2. Alexus Foyle, TM 23.1
3. Cheng Jen-wei, KKL 19.1
4. Jon Sanders, PY 18.0
5. Chen Shun-shiang, BOT 17.5

Rebounding
1. Jon Sanders, PY 12.8
2. Shawn Hawkins, KKL 11.1
3. Alexus Foyle, TM 9.6
4. Tseng Wen-ting, Yulon 9.1
5. Byron Allen, Dacin 8.7

Assists
1. Jon Sanders, PY 4.7
2. Chen Shih-nian, TB 4.2
3. Wu Yung-jen, TM 4.0
4. Tseng Wen-ting, Yulon 3.9
5. Chen Chih-chung, Yulon 3.4

Steals
1. Chang Chih-feng, Dacin 2.3
2. Tseng Wen-ting, Yulon 1.8
3. Ouyang Ching-heng, TM 1.6
4. Jon Sanders, PY 1.4
5. Chen Shih-nian, TB 1.3

Blocked Shots
1. Tseng Wen-ting, Yulon 2.5
2. Cheng Jen-wei, KKL 1.7
3. Jon Sanders, PY 1.3
4. Wu Tai-hao, TB 1.3
5. Byron Allen, Dacin 1.2

Dacin clinches regular season champion

April 16
TM 82-79 KKL
TM: A. Foyle 29p+10rb, Yen Cheng-hung 12p+10rb
KKL: S. Hawkins 22p+14rb, Chen Ching-huan 13p+10rb

Yulon 89-75 BOT
Yulon: Lu Cheng-ju 18p+9rb, Chou Shih-yuan 17p, Tseng Wen-ting 16p, Yang Che-yi 13p
BOT: Chen Shun-hsiang 14p, D. Creighton 13p

April 17
TM 93-88(OT) PY
TM: Liu Sheng-yao 24p, A. Foyle 23p+9rb
PY: Chang Yu-lin 19p, J. Sanders 18p+13rb, James Mao 17p

KKL 106-69 Dacin
KKL: S. Hawkins 25p+8rb, Wang Nan-kuei 15p
Dacin: B. Allen 15p+9rb, Tsai Jun-ming 13p+7rb

Yulon 69-64 TB
Yulon: Lee Chi-yi 12p+11rb, Lu Cheng-ju 13p
TB: Ho Shou-cheng 22p, Ha Hsiao-yuan 13p+8rb

April 18
BOT 100-96 KKL
BOT: Chen Shun-hsiang 21p, Chuang Hsiao-wen 12p+12rb, Chang Jung-hsuan 17p, D. Creighton 18p+8rb
KKL: S. Hawkins 44p+13rb, Lin Chih-lung 15p

TM 89-63 Dacin
TM: Hsu Wei-sheng 19p, A. Foyle 14p+7rb, Wei Wei 14p+9rb
Dacin: Chen Tse-wei 22p

PY 107-71 TB
PY: Chien Chia-hung 17p+13rb, Tsai Wen-cheng 15p, J. Sanders 11p+12rb+6a
TB: Ho Shou-cheng 16p+9rb, Wang Chien-wei 12p+7rb

Standing
Dacin 19-10
Yulon 18-11
PY 17-12
TB 16-13
TM 14-15
KKL 13-15
BOT 4-25

Wang Nan-kuei, KKL

PY's Chien Chia-hung

Jon Sanders

Shawn Hawkins (L) and Doug Creighton

TM's Wei Wei drives past Dacin's Chen Yi-an

(Photos: ESPN Taiwan)

Week 11 MVP: Jon Sanders...again!

Pure Youth forward Jonathan Sanders was named SBL Week 11 MVP Tuesday, winning the weekly honor for the 4th time this season and the first player to win this award back-to-back.

Sanders registered two triple-doubles last week and averaged 15 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists for the week. He is averaging 18.3 points, 12.8 rebounds and 4.7 assists for the season.

The 6-6 forward currently leads the league in rebounding and assists and ranks 4th in scoring.

2010 SBL Weekly MVPs
Week 11: Jonathan Sanders, PY
Week 10: Jonathan Sanders, PY
Week 9: Chen Shun-hsiang, BOT
Week 8: Chen Chih-chung, Yulon
Week 7: Derek Stribling, TB
Week 6: Jonathan Sanders, PY
Week 5: Alexus Foyle, TM
Week 4: Shawn Hawkins, KKL
Week 3: Chang Chih-feng, Dacin
Week 2: Tseng Wen-ting, Yulon
Week 1: Jonathan Sanders, PY

2010 SBL stats leaders (thru April 14)

Scoring
1. Shawn Hawkins, KKL 25.0
2. A. Foyle, TM 23.3
3. Cheng Jen-wei, KKL 19.6
4. Jon Sanders, PY 18.3
5. Chen Shun-shiang, BOT 17.5

Rebounding
1. Jon Sanders, PY 12.8
2. Shawn Hawkins, KKL 11.0
3. A. Foyle, TM 9.8
4. Tseng Wen-ting, Yulon 9.4
5. Byron Allen, Dacin 8.8

Assists
1. Jon Sanders, PY 4.7
2. Chen Shih-nian, TB 4.2
3. Wu Yung-jen, TM 4.1
4. Tseng Wen-ting, Yulon 4.0
5. Chen Chih-chung, Yulon 3.5

Steals
1. Chang Chih-feng, Dacin 2.3
2. Tseng Wen-ting, Yulon 1.8
3. Ouyang Ching-heng, TM 1.6
4. Jon Sanders, PY 1.4
5. Chen Shih-nian, TB 1.4

Blocked Shots
1. Tseng Wen-ting, Yulon 2.6
2. Cheng Jen-wei, KKL 1.7
3. Jon Sanders, PY 1.3
4. Wu Tai-hao, TB 1.3
5. Byron Allen, Dacin 1.3

Taiwanese players finish season in China

Lin Chih-chieh had 8 points and 4 rebounds in Game 3 of the Chinese CBA semifinal between Zhejiang Lions and Xinjiang, a 98-89 Zhejiang loss as the Lions was swept by Xinjiang 3-0 for the second straight year in the playoffs.

Lin is scheduled to return to Taiwan this week but is uncertain to rejoin Tawan Beer for the SBL playoffs. According to the CTBA, citing FIBA regulation, Lin is not allowed to play for teams in different countries in a single season, but TB said it's going to appeal.

Lin was the best Taiwanese player in China this year. Still, his average was down, averaging 11.7 points, 4 rebounds and 2.9 assists in 34 minutes.

Chen Hsin-an had a disappointing season with Dongguan due to injuries. He averaged only 2.4 points in 19 games and was not a regular starter.

Performance of other players in China:
Yen Hsin-shu (Shanghai): 0.9 points in 24 games.
Hsu Hao-cheng (Shanxi): 2.7 points in 23 games.
Lin Kwan-lun (Shanxi): 3 points in 3 games.

Honestly, I don't think these players went to China to "challenge a tougher competition level" like they had claimed. They went there to make more money and could care less about their playing time.

Nobody can fault them with making more money. After all, they are professional players who make a living by playing basketball. But seeing their miserable playing time in China is simply unbearable.

Playoff seeds almost certain

With two weeks remaining in the regular season, four playoff teams are almost certain as Dacin has clinched a playoff seed and the other three -- PY, TB and Yulon -- are fighting for the seeding order.

A notable trend: Yulon has lost 5 of its last 6 games following a 10-game winning streak while Dacin dropping 3 of its last 5. Both teams have been intentionally resting some off its core players, such as Yulon's center Tseng Wen-ting and Dacin's Tien Lei, ahead of the playoffs.

April 11
Dacin 101-81 Yulon
Dacin: B. Allen 25p+11rb, Chang Chih-feng 20p, Lin Yi-hui 16p+8rb, Su Yi-chieh 10p
Yulon: Chou Shih-yuan 41p (16-21 FG), Lu Cheng-ju 14p

TB 82-69 TM
TB: Yang Ching-min 24p+7rb, Wang Chien-wei 14p, Ho Shou-cheng 12p
TM: A. Foyle 20p+9rb, Wei Wei 11p

PY 100-78 BOT
PY: Chien Chia-hong 22p, Tsai Wen-cheng 21p, J. Sander 14p+12rb+12a, Hong Chih-shan 15p
BOT: Chen Shun-hsiang 20p, Chang Jung-hsuan 16p, D. Creighton 15p+6rb, Chen Yu-chih 12p+6rb

April 10
TM 73-69 Yulon
TM: A. Foyle 23p+8rb+5a, Wu Yung-jen 13p+9rb
Yulon: Yang Che-yi 23p, Tseng Wen-ting 15p+6rb+5a+4blk, Lee Chi-yi 12rb, Lu Cheng-ju 10p

PY 102-82 Dacin
PY: Hong Chih-shan 24p, James Mao 18p+7rb+4a, J. Sanders 16p+14rb+10a
Dacin: Lo Yu-chun 18p, Su Yi-chieh 13p, B. Allen 10p+8rb, Yue Ying-li 16p+7rb

TB 98-96(OT) KKL
TB: Yang Ching-min 23p+7rb+5a, D. Stribling 17p+12rb, Yang Yu-min 14, Pan Jen-te 13p, Ho Shou-cheng 12p
KKL: Chen Ching-huan 24p+10rb, Wang Nan-kuei 20p, S. Hawkins 22p+12rb, Cheng Jen-wei 12p+15rb

April 9
KKL 88-65 BOT
KKL: S. Hawkins 23p+12rb, Lin Chih-lung 20p, Cheng Jen-wei 15p
BOT: D. Creighton 14p+11rb, Wu Jui-chin 10p+11rb, Sun Hwan-po 15p

TB 80-70 Dacin
TB: D. Stribling 17p+15rb, Ha Hsiao-yuan 16p+9rb, Yang Ching-min 13p, Chen Shih-nian 11p
Dacin: B. Allen 14p, Lin Yi-hui 13p

Standing
Dacin 19-8
Yulon 16-11
PY 16-11
TB 16-11
KKL 12-13
TM 11-15
BOT 3-24

(Photos: ESPN Taiwan)

Tseng Wen-ting named SBL Feb/March MVP

Tseng Wen-ting was named the Most Valuable player of Taiwan's Super Basketball League (SBL) for the months of February and March, the league announced Thursday.

A media poll awarded the honor to Tseng, a 204-centimeter center, after he led the Yulon Luxgens to a 10-game winning streak in March as they regained momentum after the Lunar New Year break. Tseng averaged 13.1 points, 9.1 rebounds, 1.93 steals and 2.3 blocked shots during the month.

"It's a big surprise. I guess I got this award because we did pretty well after the New Year break," the 26-year-old said.

Yulon, a perennial powerhouse in Taiwanese basketball that has won three SBL titles in the league's seven-year history, suffered the first four-game losing streak in team history around the New Year vacation. But now they have a record of 17 wins and five losses, one game behind the league-leading Dacin Tigers.

The season has been especially difficult for Tseng because Yulon is the only team in the seven-team league that did not hire foreign players after the SBL decided for the first time this year to allow all of its teams to hire imports to improve the level of competition.

The decision left Tseng the undesirable task of having to defend against taller and stronger foreign players. Injuries to both of his knees made the challenge even more difficult, but Tseng played through and didn't complain about not getting enough support from the bench players.

"It's not a surprise at all for me because when you look at him (Tseng), you can't just look at the numbers. He has been contributing to the team in a lot of ways and he always plays his heart out and gives 100 percent on the court, " said Yulon head coach Zhang Xu-lei, a naturalized Taiwan citizen who formerly played for the Chinese national team.

Tseng, a Taiwan national team regular, said his goal for the season would first be making the post-season and then hopefully returning to the championship series in June.