S27 Cup Final : Lionheart nabbed Tournament Champion by a controversial Free Throw edge, beat SaungHninPwint 107-106
Truly unbelieveable. Hardly anyone believe that referee could blew that whistle.
Trailed at 104-106 with a ball possession after timeout, SHP managed to find ways from Wu Dong Sze to feed Xie Zonghao for a strong inside shot to tie the game 106-106 with 3 seconds left. But Jaguar didn't waste time. Fan Ping Wai quickly lob the ball toward sprinting Arnaud Bonnet, who took the shot with Vrisan Sharma contesting. Shot missed but referee unexpectedly blew the whistle, as it was supposed to be a clean defense. Bonnet missed the first one, and after made the 2nd FT, he was mobbed by all Jaguar players and threw up to the air for celebration. Bigben raised a victory fist at the same time after that swish.
Meanwhile SHP manager were trying to argue with the call but get objected by officials. According to one of them, Sharma did make a good defense, but didn't control his body well and made a slight contact with Bonnet.
At the beginning quarter, SHP looked like the mighty superstar team who is ready to swallow the little Lionheart lineup, crushing inside to 23-13 at the first quarter. Like semifinal match vs EricUnited, Jaguar suddenly woke up at 2nd quarter, firing from all angle and eventually took the lead 26-24. Baskets kept traded, and Jaguar led 48-47 at halftime. 3rd quarter, again it was very similar to previous game, with the Arnaud Bonnet took over the scoring job, dropping 9 points in the third, and Jaguar up by 10 points.
Crowd were totally stunned at 4th,as Jaguar didn't stop raining long range shots, gained their biggest lead 92-80 and looked like it's almost locked for the win. But Suhaimi bin Awang scored six unanswered points to cut the lead into 6. Jaguar dragged it away again after Halim Mohd bin Noor and Arnaud Bonnet sank two big three pointers, making it 10 points lead again. However, they went scoreless for 3 minutes after that, enabling SHP to slowly mount back and eventually tied at 104-104 after Awang layup over FPW. FPW sank a jumper on the next possession for 106-104, and Zonghao tied it again, setting it to the final dramatic possession.
Wawruch the led the balancing Jaguar attack with 30 points (5/11 3pointers). Chan Ren Qing second with 20 points and 8 rebounds. Bonnet once again were big with 19 points and 6 assists, hitting 4/9 both semifinal and final games. He only shot 20% from 3pointers this season. Lukas Fritton and Francisze Sklors each have 10 points, Mohd bin Noor had a colourful stats with 9 points 7 rebounds 6 assists and 3 blocks, arguably the most important piece on tonights game defensively. SHP managed to tie the game with him fouled out at 4 minutes left in the 4th. Fan Pingwai, he just came in the right time. Even though only playing 17 minutes, he shot 3/5 including the key jumper near end of 4th quarter.
Xie Zonghao led SHP with 28 points, Vukašin Ðurić scored 21 points. Local hero Suhaimi bin Awang had 12points and 11rebs. Wu Dong Sze has 14 points, the ex-captain of last season U21will be remembered for his strong layup drive over Chan Ren Qing in the 4th quarter. SHP outrebounded Jaguar team 48-35.
With the win, the first ever trophy has headed to Lionheart Jaguar HQ, after seven season of endless rebuilding.
Last edited by J-Lion at 5/22/2014 11:59:17 AM
Champions are those who kept fighting till the end. Even if we lost, we are still the Champion. "The Queen - We Are The Champions"