Bhinneka, Panasia make winning start in A Mild

Bhinneka, Panasia make winning start in A Mild

SURAKARTA, Central Java (JP): Bhinneka Sritex drubbed Cahaya
Lestari Surabaya 73-54 before a vociferous home crowd on Thursday
during the second day of the 1999 A Mild Kobatama National
Basketball league's fifth series.

CLS was still licking its wounds from a 38-82 humiliation to
defending champion Panasia Indosyntec on Wednesday night at
Bhinneka Basketball Stadium.

Panasia will likely face a tougher test against Bima Sakti
Nikko Steel on Friday. Panasia beat the Malang-based club 53-43
at home in the second series despite Bima Sakti's 39-33 lead in
the first half.

Bhinneka, which ranked second in the Western Division behind
Panasia with a win-loss record of eight and two, is unlikely to
face much trouble against Pacific Bank Swadesi on Friday.

In the women's league, CLS clobbered Jakarta-based Merah Putih
72-32, Rajawali Sakti won 60-54 against Mataram Utama and home
favorite Bhinneka defeated Bandung-based Rajawali 74-68.

Bhinneka benefited from the leg and backbone injuries
sustained by CLS' top center Hari Suharsono, which forced him to
return to the bench before the first half ended 39-30 in
Bhinneka's favor.

Hari was invited to join the training program for the 1999
Southeast Asian (SEA) Games but he was eliminated in the
selection process.

Bhinneka's assistant coach, Hartono, said luck played a
commanding role in the team's win.

"Hari's injury killed CLS' chances," he told The Jakarta Post
after the match.

He said he instructed his top player I Made "Lolik"
Sudiadnyana to play aggressively. He was his team's top scorer
with 30 points.

"We saw that Lolik was only marked by a CLS player who was
much shorter," he said. Lolik, a national team player, is 188
centimeters tall. (44)