Alab recover from slow start, ground Slingers for fifth straigtht win

Alab Pilipinas proved that it can compete with the big boys

Facing a highly-touted Chong Son Kung Fu squad for the first time, Alab Pilipinas was not fazed. With the home crowd rallying behind them, the Philippine-based squad outlasted the second-running club team in the ASEAN Basketball League in overtime, 94-91, Wednesday evening at the Sta. Rosa Sports Complex in Laguna.

With the win, Alab lifts its record to 7-4, cutting the lead of the third-running Mono Vampire to just a solitary game. Kung Fu, on the other hand, dropped to 6-2.

It would not have happened if not for the heroics of Bobby Ray Parks, Jr., Justin Brownlee, Renaldo Balkman, and Josh Urbiztondo.

Chong Son held a one-point lead with just a minute left in extra time. Brownlee  was fouled by Chong Son sparkplug Sidikejiang Kamiran seconds later, giving Alab the edge. Anthony Tucker then missed a three-pointer, but Brownlee traveled on the next play, returning possession to the visitors. Balkman was able to pickpocket Kamiran that led to a dagger basket by Brownlee to seal the win.

Brownlee struggled all throughout the contest, but still managed to put up 20 points on 7-for-27 shooting to go along with 11 rebounds. Balkman scored five of his 20 points in overtime, while grabbing 16 boards and swatting away six shots.

Without Parks, Jr., Alab could not have kept up with the first-year club team. The reigning ABL Local Most Valuable Player had a season-high 31 points on 11-for-18 shooting to go along with six rebounds and two assists. Moreover, he defended reigning ABL Heritage Import of the Week Mikh McKinney on the other end.

Alab had to rally back for the majority of regulation, falling behind by as much as 11 points early in the contest. But in crunch time, it was Urbiztondo who stepped up, knocking down three straight triples late in the final quarter that turned a five-point deficit into a two-point Alab lead with 1:35 left.

McKinney — who finished the game with 25 points, nine assists, six rebounds, and three steals — was able to knot things up later on but was answered right back by a Brownlee bucket. A costly turnover by Urbiztondo led to the game-tying lay-up by Justin Howard with 10 ticks left. A last second, desperation triple by Brownlee would have brought the house down, but the shot fell short.

Howard and Tucker had 25 and 24 points respectively, with the former grabbing 18 rebounds as well. McKinney's fellow Filipino-American Caelan Tiongson had 11 points and six rebounds, as he was saddled with foul trouble all throughout the contest.

Alab will next face the Singapore Slingers on Sunday, February 4, at the OCBC Arena in Kallang, Singapore.

The Scores:

Alab 94– Parks Jr. 31, Brownlee 20, Balkman 20, Urbiztondo 9, Domingo 8, Maierhofer 6, Celiz 0, Hontiveros 0, Javelona 0

Chong Son 91 – Mckinney 25, Howard 25, Tucker 24, Tiongson 11, Kamiran 6, Liu 0, He 0, Zhao 0, Luo 0

Quarterscores: 18-24, 39-47, 62-65, 84-84, 94-91 (OT)

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