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By ADRIAN STEWART CO
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MANILA – Mighty Sports-Philippines failed to sustain its hot start to suffer a 78-77 loss to the Shanghai Sharks in the championship game of the 2016 Merlion Cup on Sunday night at the OCBC Arena in Singapore.
Holding a 69-55 lead early in the final quarter, the Mighty Sports failed to hang on to the win as the Sharks unleashed a 23-8 finishing run capped by three free throws by Jimmer Fredette to snatch a one-point edge.
Fredette, who played for the Sacramento Kings in the NBA before moving to the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA), finished with 41 points, including 13 in the final quarter, for the Yao Ming-owned Sharks.
The Sharks went on a strong start behind the 18 first quarter points of Fredette to build a 25-17 lead. The Mighty Sports then rallied back behind Al Thornton to snatch a slim 41-40 lead at halftime on a conversion by Matthew Wright.
From there it was all Mighty Sports as Thornton and Dewarick Spencer spearheaded a run to give the Philippine squad its largest lead at 69-55, but the Sharks responded to tie the score at 73-all on triples by Fredette and Guerschon Yabusele.
Ilonggo Kiefer Ravena then surged the Mighty Sports ahead at 77-73 following a completed four-point play. A Yabusele basket cut the deficit to 77-75 followed by the game-winning free throws by Fredette to complete the turnaround for the Sharks.
Thornton led the way with 36 points for the Mighty Sports, which failed to snatch its second consecutive international basketball crown after ruling the 2016 William Jones Cup last July.
The Merlion Cup, one of the prestigious pocket basketball tournaments in Singapore, made a return this year after a 20-year absence. It is the first time that the Philippines has been invited to the event./PN
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