TNT bowed out of the East Asia Super League (EASL) Champions Week after absorbing an 80-69 loss to reigning KBL champion Seoul SK Knights Friday night at Nikkan Arena in Utsunomiya.
The Tropang Giga gave the Knights a good fight until early in the fourth period when the Korean side went on an 11-0 run to peel off from a tight 59-59 contest to a 71-59 lead.
The loss left TNT with a 0-2 record in Group B and out of the running for a berth in the championship round. It lost its debut game against B. League title holder Utsunomiya Brex, 99-66.
The Knights swept their way to the finals of the week-long tournament with a perfect 2-0 record in the same group. Just a day ago, they rallied back from 18 points down for a 92-84 win over the Bay Area Dragons.
The Dragons and Brex both finished with an even 1-1 record, but Bay Area clinched the no. 2 seed in the group after a 96-90 win over Utsunomiya and will now advance in the battle for third place.
The ouster of TNT left San Miguel to carry the fight for the country in the $500,000 tournament.
The Beermen are playing Anyang KGC featuring Asian import Rhenz Abando at presstime in the final day of group stage on Saturday which shifts to Okinawa.
San Miguel lost its opening game against Ryukyu Golden Kings, 96-68, and faces a must-win against Anyang if it is to stay in contention for the remaining finals berth in Group A.
Anyang KGC and Ryukyu Golden Kings currently share the top spot in the group with 1-0 records, while the Beermen and Taipei Fubon Braves are both 0-1.
The Kings and Braves are also playing each other as of press time at the newly-built Okinawa Stadium.
The scores:
Seoul SK Knights 80 ˗ Warney 21, Kim 21, Williams 20, Heo 6, Song 4, Choi S. 3, Choi W. 3, Oh 2, Choi B. 0.
TNT 69 ˗ Oftana 16, Hudson 14, M. Williams 13, Ochefu 12, Pogoy 9, Varilla 3, Marcelo 2, Chua 0, Cruz 0, Khobuntin 0, K. Williams 0, Ganuelas-Rosser 0.
Quarters: 25-28; 41-42; 57-55; 80-69.
