MANGILAO (Guam) - In the first of two games in Mangilao, Guam were the first to strike with a number of hometown fans in the stands against Chinese Taipei. The home team won 77-72 and will hold a 5-point advantage going into the second game of the series.

Chinese Taipei held the lead for the majority of the game led by the spectacular play of their star guards, but they allowed a small enough gap for Guam to rally back to take the lead.

The visitors built up a lead as big as 12 points heading into the halftime break, powered by the scoring of their backcourt tandem of Chen Ying-Chun and Lin Ting-Chien. The duo combined for 46 points on 17-29 shooting from the field with 6 three-pointers.

However, it was in the third quarter that Chinese Taipei fell short, scoring only 9 points in that 10-minute span. This allowed Guam to rally back and claim the lead before start of the final interval.

Tai Wesley was the main contributor for Guam as expected with 23 points and 9 rebounds, but it was the stepping up of the younger players that proved to be the push Guam needed to take this first win.

Takumi Simon was one of the youngsters that rose to the occasion. The 21-year-old caught fire for 18 points on 4 three-pointers with some coming in clutch situations, earning the praise of his coach and veteran teammates.

Guam will now head into the second game on August 28 with a 5-point advantage. This two-game series will be decided by aggregate score across both games, where the winner will claim the final ticket to FIBA Asia Cup 2021.

FIBA