Hassan Thomas (right) with a mid-range shot. The import player had 29 points and 14 rebounds against the Dragons to help the Buffaloes get their second win. Photo courtesy of VBA

By Xuân Đăng

HCM CITY Before their match, both the Đà Nẵng Dragons and the Hanoi Buffaloes had won in the first week of VBA 2024.

Both teams entered the match with their best starting five to aim for another win. The duo Bryan Nguyễn and Max Allen of the Dragons played well in the first quarter and caused many problems for the Buffaloes' defence system.

However, the Dragons could not maintain those explosive plays in the following quarters.

Still, familiar names such as Hassan Thomas, Devin Peterson and Eric Frederick, aka "Big E", scored a series of points that helped the Buffaloes open their biggest lead of 25 points for the Buffaloes (75-50) in the third quarter .

Realizing that the match was decided, coach Erik Rashad asked his players to play slowly. This was an opportunity for the Dragons to break away to narrow the gap.

Allen played aggressively in the paint area, and along with Nguyễn's mobility from the outside, the Dragons kept their hope for a great comeback.

However, as soon as the Dragons started to rise, the Buffaloes immediately shut it down with consecutive three-point shots by Frederick and Peterson.

The match ended with a final score of 98-89 for the Buffaloes

Thomas, the unstoppable scorer of the Buffaloes, was the Player of the Game with 29 points and 14 rebounds.

"The youth and talent of the young Dragons' players caused us a lot of trouble. They are definitely a formidable opponent this year. Although we missed some open shots, I am quite satisfied with what we have done. In the upcoming matches, we will keep our focus to improve day by day,” Thomas said.

In this convincing victory, along with Thomas, the two other key players, Peterson and Frederick, also had 29 and 23 points, respectively.

On the other side, 2.06m tall centre Allen had an outstanding performance with 36 points, 10 rebounds and a 50 per cent three-point shooting rate (4/8). Despite having some turnovers, Nguyễn still got 21 points and five assists. VNS