Alab Pilipinas guard Jason Brickman. ABL PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines–After a rough start, things are starting to fall into place for San Miguel Alab Pilipinas.
Sam Deguara and Jason Brickman combined to torment their former team as Alab exacted revenge with a 96-73 whipping of Mono Vampire Tuesday for its third straight win in Asean Basketball League Season 10 at Filoil Flying V Centre in San Juan.
The 7-foot-5 center from Malta who played for Mono two seasons ago delivered 20 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks as the Filipino club tied their victims with a 3-1 record.
Brickman, who was replaced by Mono as world import after a slow start last season, produced another efficient game for his new team, tossing eight points to go with eight rebounds and 10 assists against a single turnover.
Nick King also had a solid game for Alab, finishing with 24 points, five rebounds and three steals, while Khalif Wyatt tallied 13 points, just two days after scoring 28 points in the win over the Singapore Slingers.
It was a big win for Alab considering the fact that Mono dealt the Filipino club a 111-76 beatdown in Bangkok last month in their season opener. Mono is also considered one of the favorites this season with a lineup led by ABL veterans Ryan Watkins and Mike Singletary.
Putting its winning run on the line against Alab, Mono stayed in step with the hosts in the first half, before fading in the last two quarters. Tyler Lamb fired 22 points, but after Singletary‘s 17 points, no other Mono player hit twin digits. Watkins was held to just 4 points on 2-of-9 shooting.
In contrast, Brickman had the Alab offense humming in the second half as he constantly found King and Deguara for baskets from in close. Alab went on a 17-0 tear bridging the third and fourth quarters to put the game beyond Mono’s reach.
Deguara’s entry has helped change the fortunes of coach Jimmy Alapag’s team as Alab now boasts of a tremendous post presence on top of his experience playing in the ABL the last three seasons.
The Scores
SAN MIGUEL ALAB PILIPINAS 96 – King 24, Deguara 20, Wyatt 13, Ganuelas-Rosser 11, Brickman 8, Gray 6, Heading 5, Domingo 5, Vigil 4, Rangel 0, Caracut 0
MONO VAMPIRE 73 – Lamb 22, Singletary 17, Morgan 9, Knowles 9, Ananti 6, Watkins 4, Lish 2, Chanthachon 2, Phuangla 2, Saengtong 0, Boonserm 0, Towaroj 0
QUARTER SCORES: 20-18, 38-35, 68-58, 96-73