Strong Group-Pilipinas’ reign has come to an end.
Despite a dominant 117-74 victory over semifinal-bound host Chinese Taipei Blue to close out the group phase of the 45th William Jones Cup on Thursday at Xinzhuang Gymnasium, the defending two-time champions were formally eliminated from contention earlier in the day when KBL side Wonju DB defeated Japan, 75-64.
The result gave Wonju DB the better quotient over Strong Group, ending the Philippines’ hopes of advancing to the semifinals despite finishing Group A with a 5-1 record, tied with Wonju DB for the best mark in the pool and boasting a pool-high +14.0 point differential.
Chinese Taipei Blue had already been allocated a semifinal slot by the Chinese Taipei Basketball Association, the country’s basketball federation, while Wonju DB owned the better quotient at +5 because the two teams split their head-to-head meetings.
Strong Group, however, made sure to leave the group phase with a statement victory.
“Wala na akong masasabi diyan. Ang sa akin lang, susundin ko ang payo sa akin ng nanay ko, ‘Huwag mong kunin ang bagay na hindi talaga para sa ‘yo,'” said Strong Group chairman Frank Lao, who also serves as president of the Philippine National Volleyball Federation.
“We wanted to really blow out Taipei to show that we were the ones who deserved to be playing for the championship. We’ve really hit our stride and are playing at a high level right now. It’s just so, so unfortunate that this is the way things are set up,” added Strong Group head coach Charles Tiu.
In the other group, UC Irvine and Chinese Taipei White advanced to the semifinals.
Strong Group was consistent from start to finish, racing to a 25-17 lead in the opening quarter before exploding for 29 points in the second to take a 19-point advantage into halftime.
Strong Group held the hosts to a 13-of-38 shooting clip in the first half, while Remy Martin scored all 19 of his points before the break.
Matthew Wright then caught fire in the third quarter, scoring 16 of his 18 points to help Strong Group stretch its lead to 92-49 heading into the final frame.
The lead ballooned to as high as 49 points, 112-63, late in the game.
Isaiah Pineiro led Strong Group with 22 points and 13 rebounds, while Boban Marjanovic added 12 points and six rebounds.
Locals Titiang Manalili and DJ Fenner also made their contributions, with Manalili tallying 13 points, eight assists, and six rebounds, while Fenner finished with 10 points and four rebounds.
Strong Group will take on Jordan in the fifth-place game on Friday.
“We want to continue to represent the Philippines and our community here with pride, so we will finish strong,” said Tiu.
The Scores:
Strong Group 117 — Pineiro 22, Martin 19, Wright 18, Manalili 13, Marjanovic 12, Fenner Jr. 10, Agee 9, Navarro 6, Dave Ildefonso 4, Diouf 4, Shaun Ildefonso 0, Miller 0.
Chinese-Taipei Blue 74 — Xie 18, Chen 14, Morrison 12, Kuo 9, Sung 7, Wu 5, Manu 5, Li 3, Chou 1.
Quarterscores: 25-17, 54-35, 92-49, 117-74.
