DUBAI (United Arab Emirates) - Taoyuan Pauian find themselves in a tough predicament entering the BCL Asia 2025 Quarter-Finals as they will have to compete without their star for the remainder of the tournament.
No less than head coach Iurgi Caminos disclosed that Lu Chun-Hsiang has been ruled out of the tilt after sustaining a right ankle injury during their eventual win over Changwon LG on opening night last Saturday.
"He’s not going to play," said the Spanish mentor.
Caminos said as much moments after the Pilots' 99-82 defeat at the hands of defending champions Al Riyadi on Monday night at the Sheikh Saeed Bin Maktoum Sports Hall in the final game of the Group Phase.
And there, Lu was reduced to a spectator. He showed up in street clothes and helplessly watched his team badly miss his presence on the court against the long-time Lebanese powerhouse, who went on to sweep Group A.
The 27-year-old got hurt barely two minutes into their game against the Sakers. He sprained his ankle at the 8:20-mark of the first quarter when he tried to attack the defense of opposing center Kevin Allen.
Play was then stopped seconds later, and he had to be carried by his teammates on the way to the bench.
Lu never returned to the game although Taoyuan Pauian managed to get the job done and in convincing fashion, 89-73, thus putting one foot into the door of the Quarter-Finals which they eventually entered.
But now, they will have to play in the Final Phase's opening round on June 11 without him, which, needless to say, is a massive blow to their chances especially in going up against the hosts in Shabab Al Ahli.
The Pilots, though, are thinking long-term, and deemed it best to no longer take any risk with one of their top guns in the BCL Asia-East 2025 as evidenced by his per-game norms of 14.3 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 4.7 assists.
"I mean, he twisted an ankle. He will [need] at least 10 days to two weeks," said Caminos.
"Right now, we are not going to take any risk," he added. "Also, he can’t walk."
FIBA