Big man -Yevgen Sakhniuk help the City Wings keep their hopes alive for playoffs. Photo courtesy of VBA

HCM CITY — The result of the match between the Ho Chi Minh City Wings and the Nha Trang Dolphins was unexpected, as the home team won against a stronger opponent.

The Nha Trang Dolphins were the favoured team, and they controlled the game in the first few minutes.

The Dolphins players had a good day beyond the three-point line, which helped the guest take a 11-4 lead. 

The Wings refused to give up as this is a match that they had to win to have a chance to advance to the playoffs.

The Wings young players rose up and equalized 13-13.

But Dominique Tham showed his physical strength and helped the visitors regain a four-point lead (24-20) after the first quarter.

Entering the second quarter, big man Yevgen Sakhniuk of the Wings had an amazing performance as he blocked, scored, stole and assisted.

The host took back the lead with the score 48-42 before the break. 

After the break, Madarious Gibbs equalized the score at 48-48. 

The score remained equalize (65-65) until the last minute of the third quarter. However, Yevgen Sakhniuk shined once more when he had another rebound, started a fast break and had a perfect layup to help the Wings take a 67-65 lead.

The match continued to be tense in the final quarter.

But on a day when the Wings players were in the zone, in the last five minutes, they continuously scored from outside the three-point line to help the host take a 87-80 lead.

With the remaining three minutes, the Dolphins rose up to narrow the lead but lost 90- 87 to the home team. 

Yevgen Sakhniuk received the Player of the Game award with 23 points and 19 rebounds. VNS