Sameen Ayyub Swint of the Warriors tries to steal a ball from Wiliam Trần of the Dragons. Thanglong won the game while Swint best player of the match. Photo of VBA

HÀ NỘI — The Thanglong Warriors made a sparkling start at the Vietnam Pro Basketball League (VBA), beating the Danang Dragons 106-94 on June 11 in Hà Nội.

The Hanoi team became the first side to score more than 100 points in one match this season.

It was a first meeting in Việt Nam between two veteran coaches Todd Purves and Chris Daleo. Purves takes charge of the Dragons after managing the Việt Nam national team at the 32nd SEA Games. Meanwhile, Daleo left the Thai national team to land with the Warriors.

The Dragons created high pressure from the beginning and went ahead 15-6 after the first five minutes.

Purves had to call a time out to find a solution. William Trần was put on the court and the heritage player, who was expected be the star of the season, helped the Dragons to narrow the score at 26-20.

The Dragons were still slower than their rival early in the second quarter. But they gradually climbed up to leveled the score.

Four minutes to the end of the first half, Jermaine Marrow made a superb three-pointer to push the Dragons to the lead for the first time at 40-38. They led 54-49 at halftime.

Marrow continued shining in the third quarter with his six successful three-pointers. He scored 23 out of 29 points for the Dragons to help the club lead 83-77.

However, the Dragons were unexpectedly quiet in the last quarter, giving a chance for the Warriors to level the score at 84-84. 

After being nowhere in the first three quarters, Sameen Ayyub Swint of the Warriors rose up. The 1.93m defender scored from different positions on the court to open a lead of 10 points for Daleo's side.

John Fields was on the court and his huge figure and energy played a key role in sealing the game at 106-94 for the Warriors.

Warriors' Swint took the Player of the Game award with 32 points, eight assists and five rebounds.

Despite the loss, it was a perfect debut of Marrow in the VBA as he impressed spectators with eight three-pointers in one match, a new record of the regular season, for 39 points and five assists in total.

The third match will see the Nha Trang Dolphins vs the HCM City Wings at Cầu Giấy Gymnasium. VNS