Filipino-American Michael Williams shone the brightest for Saigon Heat, as the Vietnamese club dealt Hong Kong Eastern its first loss in the 8th ASEAN Basketball League, 121-115, in overtime Tuesday night at Southorn Stadium in Wan Chai, Hong Kong.
In his second game, Williams finished with 39 big markers, scoring the final eight points for Saigon in extra period to avert the strong comeback by the defending champions and help his side improve its win-loss card to 3-2.
Williams also had seven rebounds and nine assists to his statline while knocking down a whopping eight triples, an outing that perfectly followed up his debut last January 6, where he also impressed with 19 points, six boards, and four dimes in a 99-85 win over Formosa Dreamers.
Saigon was just steps away of ending HK Eastern’s seven-game streak, but the latter displayed poise and came back with a 10-0 run behind Christian Standhardinger and Lee Ki to take a 106-103 lead with 39 ticks left in regulation.
Williams came through for the Heat moments later, hitting a triple with 30 seconds left to force a deadlock. Hong Kong had chances to break the tie, but all of their three-pointers failed to hit their target, sending the match into OT.
HK Eastern had the upper hand early in OT and even managed a 113-111 lead with three minutes to go, but Williams took over for Saigon, making five straight points to give his team a 118-113 cushion with 18 seconds remaining.
Standhardinger managed to trickle in a lay-up off a post move with four ticks left to play, but Saigon moved the ball around to prevent HK from fouling. That rotation eventually led to a Williams three, which settled the final score and the win.
Filipino-German Standhardinger carried the load for the home team with 37 points and 19 rebounds. He went 16-for-26 from the field but shot just 5-of-17 from the stripe.
Akeem Scott had 29 points, seven rebounds, and nine assists for Saigon. Moses Morgan finished with 27 points and 11 boards, while Maxie Esho chipped in 16 markers despite being fouled out late in the fourth.
Marcus Elliott had a triple-double of 34 points, 12 boards, and 10 dimes for Hong Kong, while Ki supplied 13 markers and seven rebounds.
