Second-running Chong Son Kung Fu Basketball are on another winning streak as they collected their second straight victory at the expense of the Westports Malaysia Dragons, 96-79, Thursday night at Nanhai Gymnasium in China.
Kung Fu improved to 5-1 and solidified their hold of the second spot in the standings, while the Dragons dropped their second game in a row and are now 3-6.
Chongson’s Filipino-American imports shone bright in the win. Mikh McKinney powered the Chinese ball club with 32 points, four rebounds, and six assists, while Caelan Tiongson had 18 markers, eight boards, and four dimes.
The home team roared to a good start by opening the match with a 15-5 spree thanks to the foreign troika of Justin Howard, Tiongson and McKinney — a lead that ballooned to 16 points, 31-15, with 8:36 to go in the second chapter.
The Dragons came back to life after being buried, outscoring Kung Fu, 21-18, behind Fil-American Joshua Munzon and American AJ West, to wipe the huge gap and close within just four, 44-48, at the half.
That, however, proved to be the closest Westports could get. Kung Fu opened the third with a 9-2 run to regain their double-digit lead, and moments later, they led by 16 once more, 67-51, after Tiongson’s trey with 5:12 on the clock.
Chongson never let up after that. They posted the game’s widest margin at 28 points, 79-51, after McKinney’s basket with 1:59 remaining in the third quarter — more than enough to make things all but settled.
World Import Anthony Tucker nearly had a triple-double for Chongson as he had 21 points, 14 rebounds, and eight assists. The league’s all-time leading scorer Justin Howard collected 16 points, 14 caroms, two dimes, and two blocks.
Munzon paced the Malaysian club team with 22 points, five boards, four assists, and three steals. West backed up Munzon with 19 markers, seven rebounds, and four blocks, while Marcus Marshall had 11 points and six feeds.
