Familiarity helps Yang at Eastern

Glenn Yang’s familiarity with the PBA style was evident all of Friday night when visiting Hong Kong Eastern cut the mighty TNT down to size in its Commissioner’s Cup debut.

A member of the now-defunct Bay Area Dragons that tested eventual champion Barangay Ginebra during the 2022 edition of the same tournament, Yang scattered 19 points, eight assists and six rebounds in the 105-84 rout fashioned at Ninoy Aquino Stadium in Malate, Manila.

“It’s like a redemption season, you know, that we get another crack at it,” he told reporters of the gig with Eastern where he is joined by former Dragons teammates Kobey Lam and Hayden Blankley.

Passport issues

“We came this close the last time, so we’re trying to finish the job and win the whole thing,” he added. “Honestly, I didn’t think me, Hayden and Kobey would come back [here]. So when we found out Eastern was coming here, it was honestly a dream come true.”

Yang dealt with passport issues that kept him from traveling back to Manila and playing in the 99-81 loss to Rain or Shine, his team’s first, last Wednesday.

“I was watching the [Painters] game from Hong Kong, and it was tough, you know. We were rolling the last two games and then to see them [the rest of the team] lose? Obviously, I wanted to be out there,” he said.

“This game was marked on my calendar because I knew they were the [recent] champs,” he said of the Tropang Giga, who were coming off a Governors’ Cup title romp a few weeks ago. “I really wanted to have a good game, beat them, and show that Eastern is here to stay and that we’re going to be competing for a championship, for sure.” INQ