ASIA PACIFIC BOYS ADVANCE IN JR NBA GLOBAL CHAMPIONSHIPS

Written by Oliver Kay

Asia Pacific Boys:

After earning the second seed in their group, the boys began their knockout campaign today with a terrific performance against Latin America. Dent showed off his scoring prowess once again, scoring ten of his 20 points in the second quarter.

He was also incredibly efficient with his shooting, taking lots of smart shots. Dent scored with amazing accuracy, shooting 85.7 percent from the field, missing only one of his seven field-goal attempts. He also demonstrated his calmness at the free-throw line and his ability to draw contact, going to the line nine times and nailing seven.

Turnovers were the only blemish on his game. Dent was able to keep them in check on the first half but the rapidly mounted in the second, getting six, for a total of seven.

The Asia Pacific boys were able to secure a convincing 69-59 win, despite Latin America making a fourth quarter surge.

Dent finished the game with 20 points, seven rebounds and one assist.

Asia Pacific will now play Africa at a time yet to be determined.

Asia Pacific Girls:

The girls came into the knockout stage with the fourth seed in their group and faced the undefeated Latin America.

Latin America showed why they were the number one seed early, rolling over Asia Pacific 9-16 in the first period. Hanson helped to keep her team’s head above water, scoring four points, two of them off a drive and another two from a nice hook shot.

From there, Latin America was able to maintain control for the remainder of the first half. In the third quarter Asia Pacific mounted an impressive comeback, outscoring their opponents 15-4 and ending the period trailing 26-33.

The fourth quarter was a tight contest. Asia Pacific even managed to cut the deficit to a single point around the six-minute mark on the back of an 8-2 run. In the end, Latin America proved to be too strong on the day and won, 41-47.

Hanson fished the game with six points, one rebound and one assist. She had a tough shooting night, making three of her 12 attempts.

Under the guidance of coach Craig Stratford, Joshua Dent and the Asia Pacific Boys are through to the semi-finals of the Jr NBA Global Championships in Orlando after a victory against Latin America. For Summah Hanson and the Asia Pacific girls, the tournament is over, after falling in a hard-fought battle against Latin America.