Aspac, Indosyntec to meet in final
JAKARTA (JP): Defending champion Aspac of Jakarta capitalized on Bima Sakti Nikko Steel's last-minute fouls to edge out the Malang club 76-68 (36-38) in the Kobatama national basketball league final four matches yesterday.
Aspac's victory renders a carbon copy of last year's final because it will take on Panasia Indosyntec of Bandung in tomorrow's final. Indosyntec had first-half trouble before seeing off newcomer Satria Muda 95-84.
Both Aspac and Bima Sakti were error-prone in the first half. Scores raced wildly, with many scores resulting from free-throws.
Aspac's star, Kenny Travis, was often frustrated as he frequently failed his free-throws. Bima Sakti's Victor Roring was successful in preventing Travis from developing his powerful, stealthy attacks.
The erroneous tones of both teams lingered into the second half, but the marked difference between the two was that Travis was out of Roring's shadows. Roring had committed enough fouls and risked being sent off.
When Travis escaped from close marking, Aspac became more spirited. At 40-40, Travis poured in two three-pointers which left his opponents panting with a wide 46-40 gap. But Bima's Sujudi soon came to the rescue, scoring two three-pointers to equalize at 46-46.
In the other match of the day, last year's losing finalist Indosyntec, led by its American Gerald McDonald and Nigerian-born Emeka Okinwa, found real opposition in the first half which saw the Bandung side managing only a slender lead of 51-49.
McDonald led the scoring with 32 points for Indosyntec, and Okinwa added 25. Mark Moton threw in 31 points and Robert Richardson 28 for final four debutante Satria Muda.
"Our players carried a great burden because today's was a do- or-die game," Suwadi Bing Andi, Indosyntec's team manager said afterwards.
"We just aimed to get into the final. We've achieved that and we hope we can win the deciding match on Saturday," he added.
Indosyntec coach Deddy K said that despite the win, his men failed to benefit from man-to-man marking, which he had believed would keep the Jakarta side's forays at bay.
"Apparently it did not work very well. Satria Muda has excellent shooters," he praised his opposing team.
Suwadi said his men would play without any pressure but expected a tough game in the final tomorrow.
It was clear that Satria Muda players lacked the composure they needed in such a tense semifinal. Two of them, Rivelino and Indrawan Waskito, were fouled off, while another four were a foul away from receiving their marching orders.
"They have not had enough experience for such a crucial match," Satria Muda team manager Doedi Gumbira said. (yan/arf)