Slingers overcome deficit to slay Dragons
| WESTPORTS MALAYSIA DRAGONS | SINGAPORE SLINGERS |
| 76 | 81 |
They looked like they were still carrying some ringrust following a two-week break.
The Singapore Slingers converted a decent 43 per cent of their field-goal attempts, just two-of-12 from the three-point arc and missed 10 free-throws.
But never discount their ability to grind out a result as they recovered from an eight-point deficit in the second quarter to eke out a 81-76 away victory against the Westports Malaysia Dragons at the Gem-In Mall in Selangor last night.
The visitors got off to a sluggish start against the much-improved defending champions and fell behind 27-21 in the first quarter.
However, led by 2.11m-tall centre Justin Howard, the Slingers regularly got into the paint which drew multiple fouls from the Dragons.
FREE THROW
While the Singaporean side were not perfect from the charity stripe, they did convert 27 out of 37 free-throw attempts - the Dragons made 10-of-13 - and that ultimately proved the difference.
Howard was once again the standout player with 26 points and a whopping 27 rebounds.
Up-and-coming shooting guard Leon Kwek was not far behind with 19 points for the Slingers.
The 20-year-old was the top-performing local cager and outscored every Dragons player, except for American forward Skylar Spencer, who also claimed 19 points.
With six wins and one loss, the Slingers continue to top the Asean Basketball League.
After the hard-fought victory, Neo Beng Siang's men will surely not take things for granted when the two teams meet again at the OCBC Arena tomorrow afternoon.
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