The Blackwater Elite received a rude welcome in Macau following a 77-93 beatdown at the hands of Seoul SK Knights in the Terrific 12 opener, Tuesday at the Tap Seac Sports Stadium.
Import Alex Stepheson finished with 22 points and 25 rebounds to lead the undermanned Elite, who missed Bobby Ray Parks, Jr. and Mike DiGregorio due to injury and fever, respectively.
Marqus Blakely supplied 14 points and five rebounds. Unfortunately, he was hounded with foul trouble, picking up three personal fouls in the first quarter before exiting late in the game.
Rookie Paul Desiderio had 12 points, but he was the only local player for Blackwater to score in double-digits.
The Elite fell down to a deep 26-43 hole in the second quarter. They then rallied back with a rousing 20-3 blitz ended by a Stepheson dunk to tie things up at 46 with 8:18 remaining in the third canto.
The Knights were quick to respond, though, unfurling a 25-9 run behind their 1-2 punch of Jameel Warney and Aaron Haynes to restore order, 71-55, with 1:43 left in the said quarter.
The loss means Blackwater (0-1) are in danger of missing the next round. They will have to beat Japan’s Chiba Jets on Wednesday, September 18, if they want a chance of advancing.
Warney flirted with a triple-double of 26 points, 14 rebounds, and eight assists to set the pace for Seoul.
Kim Min-Soo supplied 18 points, while Haynes had the same number of points alongside eight caroms.
The victory that gives the Knights the early leadership of Group A at 1-0.
The Scores:
Blackwater (77) – Stepheson 22, Blakely 14, Desiderio 12, Dario 9, Belo 5, Alolino 4, Sumang 4, Banal 3, Cruz 2, Maliksi 2, Salem 0.
Seoul SK (93) – Warney 26, Kim M.S 18, Haynes 16, Jun An 12, Choi 7, Kim S.H . 7, Chon 3, Byun 3, Kim G. W. 1, Song 0, Choi B.K. 0, Choi S.W. 0.
Quarterscores: 19-24, 36-44, 61-73, 77-93.
