MONTERREY (DIRECTV Liga de las Americas) – Fuerza Regia hosted Group B of the DIRECTV Liga de las Americas and cemented its status as favorite of the 2017 edition after finishing the preliminary group with a 3-0 record.

The team coached by Francisco “Paco” Olmos earned victories over Leones de Quilpué (Chile), Caballos de Coclé (Panama) and defending champions Guaros de Lara (Venezuela).

The Mexican club dominated Leones de Quilpué (Chile) 109-73 in their first game of the group with a huge performance by the trio of Carlos Rivera, Andy Panko and Hector Hernandez, who combined to score 58 points in the win. Rivera added 10 assists in an impressive offensive display by the host.

In their second game, Fuerza Regia had a heat check, on-fire performance from Hector Hernandez, who scored 26 points (including 6 triples) in the first half.

The host continued its dominant pace with an 89-64 victory over Caballos de Coclé (Panama) in a game in which their virtues as were on full display as a patient, organized team with great length in the paint (dominating Caballos 24-10 in the assists department and 38-29 on the boards).

On the third and final day of competition in the group, Fuerza Regia faced defending champion Guaros de Lara for the first place. It was a competitive game in which both team exchanged leads and had important performances by key players. For Fuerza Regia was Andy Panko, with 25 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists, while for Guaros it was Zach Graham with 23 points, both responsible for carrying the offensive load of their teams.

In the end, the Mexican club closed the game with a very precise attack led by Panko who scored 10 points in the quarter. They won it by the score 84-78 and finished in first place of Group B with an undefeated 3-0 record.

Fuerza Regia will once again host a stage of the DIRECTV Liga de las Americas when the team receives the visit of Soles de Mexicali (Mexico), La Union de Formosa (Argentina) and Guaros de Lara (Venezuela), during the Semi-Finals of the continental league.

With two Final4 tickets on the line, the top two teams from the Semi-Final Group in Monterrey will advance to the conclusion of the DIRECTV Liga de las Americas.

The DIRECTV Liga de las Americas is broadcast through DIRECTV (Americas), Punto2 (Puerto Rico) and through the web at livebasketball.tv (subscription required).

For the best coverage of the DIRECTV Liga de las Americas 2017, visit ligamericas.com and our social networks @ligamericas.

FIBA