Basketball

Kentrell Barkley of Saigon Heat makes a jump shot during the VBA match between Saigon Heat and Thang Long Warriors. The Heat win 91-88. Photo courtesy of VBA

 HÀ NỘI — Saigon Heat continued their winning streak at the 2023 VBA season after beating Thang Long Warriors 91-88 in the seventeenth game of this season on June 26 in the capital.

The two teams went head-to-head before in the 2020 final. This time around Heat had to try hard to secure their victory and maintain their spot at the top of the rankings.

Both teams, currently No 1 and No 2 in the rankings, played their strongest line-up, including defending and former national team members who can reliably score points from anywhere on the court.

The matched quality of them was shown in the results of the first two quarters which ended 47 - 43 for Saigon Heat, the defending champions.

Kentrell Barkley of Heat showed brilliant play as he individually scored 28 points and nine rebounds by halftime. The Warrior's points came from various players including Trương Hoàng Trung with three three-pointers.

In the third quarter, coach Chris Daleo of the Warriors gave some chances to his young players. The youngsters did a good job not only earning points but also locking the Heat star Barkley who failed to earn a single point in the 10-minute round.

However, the Heat still had Nguyễn Huỳnh Phú Vinh who made up two three-pointers while Võ Kim Bản added a further four. Their outstanding performance helped the Heat extend the gap to 70-59.

The Warriors' 21-year-old star Trần Phi Hoàng Long made up the gap with incredible breakthrough scoring to narrow the result of the third quarter to 72-63.

The first four minutes of the last quarter belonged to the Warriors who scored 15 points in a row to take the lead, forcing a time-out for the Heat.

The top national team quickly responded with the same point run to reset their lead at 87-78.

Great effort was shown from their 2.06m-tall player John Fields who helped the Warriors to narrow it to 88-85 with just 25sec remaining.

In the final seconds, Barkley and Vinh scored with three among four foul shots to make it 91-85 for the Heat while Hoàng Trung performed a three-pointer for the Warriors at 91-88 but it was not enough to level the result.

The Heat took their fifth victory in a row and strengthened their top position in the standings while the Warriors suffered their second loss this season, standing in second place. 

Barkley who earned 32 points, 19 rebounds and seven assists secured the Player of The Game award, his fifth in a row.

Saigon Heat also broke the league's record for most three-pointers in one match at 17. The record was set just one day before by the Nha Trang Dolphins in a game versus Hanoi Buffaloes. It's been a thrilling season for basketball fans. 

In upcoming games, the Warriors will go up against the Hanoi Buffaloes in the capital derby on June 29 while Saigon Heat will face the Catfish a day later. VNS