Jeron Teng. PBA IMAGES
Jeron Teng got going early as he anchored Flying V to a 119-105 rout of Gamboa Coffee Mix to stay unbeaten in the 2017 PBA D-League Foundation Cup Monday at Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig.
The blue chip swingman fired 20 of his 35 points in the first half, on an efficient 12-of-19 sniping from the field, to go with three assists and three rebounds to keep the Thunder on top of the standings at 2-0.
“Just like usual, Jeron carried us in the first half. And when he got in foul trouble, it was Eric (Salamat) who carried through for us,” said coach Eric Altamirano.
Eric Salamat bucked his shooting struggles and still wound up with 20 markers, 15 coming in the second half, on top of four assists.
Gab Banal got a near double-double of 15 points and eight rebounds, while Hans Thiele had 12 points, five rebounds, and two blocks in the win for the league-leading Flying V.
The Thunder were firing on all cylinders early, shooting 57-percent in the first half as they jumped to a 60-48 halftime edge and led by as much as 19, 96-77, after a Salamat trey with 7:43 left to play.
Despite the win, Altamirano shared that there’s still a lot to be desired with the way Flying V has played, especially on the defensive end.
“I wasn’t really happy because I felt we didn’t assert ourselves defensively today. It’s good that we won, but I’m not satisfied and we need to work on our defense because our opponent scored more than 100 points,” said the veteran mentor.
Val Acuña had 22 points for the Coffee Lovers, while Mark Sarangay had a huge double-double of 18 markers and 17 rebounds in the losing effort.
The scores:
FLYING V 119 – Teng 35, Salamat 20, Banal 15, Thiele 12, Cañada 10, Ongteco 6, Dionisio 6, Tampus 6, Torres 4, Webb 3, Colina 2, Mendoza 0.
GAMBOA COFFEE MIX 105 – Acuña 22, Sarangay 18, Acibar 15, Avenido 13, Padilla 10, Knuttel 7, Arellano 7, Jumao-as 5, Montuano 4, Dadjilul 4, David 0, Riva 0, Vidal 0.
Quarters: 31-25, 60-48, 87-73, 119-105.