JAKARTA (Indonesia) - Prawira Harum Bandung overcame adversity and stunned Hong Kong Eastern Basketball Team, 53-50, for a triumphant start to their Round 2 campaign in the Basketball Champions League Asia (BCL Asia) Qualifiers, Tuesday night at the BritAma Arena.

 
The reigning Indonesian Basketball League (IBL) champions lost star scorer Brandone Francis just 15 seconds into the third quarter due to a disqualifying foul. However, that became an opportunity for the whole crew to play collectively and soon get back on their Round 1 tormentors.

Prawira went on an 18-5 scoring tear in that whole quarter to head into the final period ahead, 44-38, and momentum never left their side the rest of the way en route to joining another IBL outfit in Pelita Jaya Basketball as the Round 2 opening night winners.

Antonio Hester top-scored for the hometown side with 19 points and 15 rebounds. James Gist fell just short of a double-double outing with 9 points and 13 rebounds, together with 3 assists, 4 steals, and 3 blocks on his way to netting an efficiency (EFF) of 21.

Indra Muhamad had 8 points while Yudha Saputera added 7 points as the spitfire guards nailed two three-pointers apiece to help out in the third-quarter reversal.

Saputera nailed a trey to tie things up and Muhamad followed it up with a triple of his own to give themselves the 37-34 lead with 4:13 left, putting them ahead for good, Prawira would lead by as many as nine, 52-43, late in the game behind a jumper by Gist.

Now they look forward to their meeting against Pelita Jaya on Wednesday, April 24, 20:00 local time, with the winner virtually assured of a spot in the BCL Asia proper.

Chris McLaughlin, meanwhile, led Hong Kong Eastern with 17 points and 10 rebounds. Yiu Pong Yip was the only other double-digit scorer with 12 in the collapse.

The reigning Hong Kong A1 Division champions still tried to come back by coming within just a field goal, 52-50, following Dominic Gilbert's conversion with 35.4 seconds left, but a split by Saputera plus Prawira's lockdown defense prevented them from coming back.

Hong Kong Eastern will try to bounce back against the NS Matrix Deers on Wednesday as well at 17:30 local time in a battle of teams coming off losses.

Strong start for Pelita Jaya

Meanwhile, Pelita Jaya put on a show in front of the home crowd by dealing the Deers a 94-79 beatdown in the Round 2 opener earlier in the day.

JaQuori McLaughlin helped set the tone early through his outside sniping, before the debuting KJ McDaniels and Justin Brownlee helped out in the second-half breakaway as the 2022-23 IBL runners-up took the early lead in the single round-robin phase.

The victory enabled the crew to remain the only unbeaten team in the Qualifiers. It could be remembered that Coach Johannis Winar's wards finished Round 1 with a 3-0 record.

Former NBA player McDaniels top-scored for Pelita Jaya with 24 points, together with 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals, and a block in 32 minutes to net a game-high EFF of 29.

McLaughlin produced 21 points, including 12 in the first quarter alone which he all got from beyond the arc (4-of-4) to help his side to a 27-16 lead that put them in control the rest of the way. He also collected 3 rebounds, 6 assists, and 2 blocks for a 27 EFF.

Andakara Prastawa Dhyaksa supplied 16 points on four triples, while Brownlee delivered 11 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists, a steal, and a block in a turnover-less performance in the victory that saw Pelita Jaya lead by as many as 17 points, 77-60, early in the fourth quarter.

Leading NS Matrix, on the other hand, was Ting Chun Hong, who finished with 24 points on a 6-of-12 clip from deep. Jordan Tolbert helped him out with 16 points and 13 rebounds.

Taishaun Johnson had 15 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, and 3 steals, while Kuek Tian Yuan added 13 points and 8 rebounds for the Deers, which only shot 36-percent from the floor.

Stats of the day

Points - 24 (KJ McDaniels, Pelita Jaya Basketball; Ting Chun Hong, NS Matrix Deers)
Rebounds - 15 (Antonio Hester, Prawira Harum Bandung)
Assists - 6 (JaQuori McLaughlin, Pelita Jaya Basketball)
Steals - 4 (James Gist, Prawira Harum Bandung)
Blocks - 3 (James Gist, Prawira Harum Bandung)
Efficiency - 29 (KJ McDaniels, Pelita Jaya Basketball)

Highlight of the day

FIBA