By REYNALD MAGALLON
Antonio Hester took charge in the final frame as the Zamboanga Valientes turned back Louvre Surabaya of Indonesia, 108-94, to open their Singapore Circuit of the ABL Invitational 2023 on a good note on Tuesday, Jan. 3 at the OCBC Arena.
The former PBA import dropped 16 of his 35 points in the payoff period while also anchoring a telling 15-2 run midway through the period that all but broke the backs of the Indonesians and en route to the convincing win.
Hester completed his all-around performance with 11 rebounds, four steals and three assists while getting ample support from the rest of the team led by the 21 points from Fil-Am guard Jeremy Arthur along with his seven rebounds and six assists.
Another import in Ryan Smith also posted a huge double-double of 18 points, 16 rebounds, four steals and three blocks while John Amores, infamous for his punching spree in the NCAA that led an unceremonious end to his collegiate career, also made a triumphant return to basketball with a solid outing of 16 points – built on two treys – on top of five boards.
The Filipinos were actually staring at an 83-87 deficit with a little over five minutes left in the contest before Hester sparked the massive run that allowed them to build a 98-89 lead with three minutes left to play.
Louvre never recovered from there as the 32-point, seven-rebound debut from import Marcus Hammonds went down the drain for Indonesia. Andrew Tew added 24 points and 22 rebounds while Fil-Indonesian guard Biboy Enguio added 14.
