Dwidasa Mitra fights hard to avoid possible relegation

BANDUNG (JP): Late strikes earned Dwidasa Mitra of Jakarta its first win and the possibility of escaping relegation from the national semiprofessional basketball league here on Thursday.

The 84-74 victory over Wismilak CLS of Surabaya in the league's fourth leg gave Dwidasa the boost in morale it needs to face decision day on Friday when it plays Bima Sakti Nikko Steel of Malang, East Java.

Bima Sakti played Indonesia Muda (IM) Texmaco, which has already secured a place in the semifinals next month, late on Thursday.

In the game played at Padjadjaran Basketball Hall, Dwidasa was left trailing behind until well into the second quarter, in which it managed to level the game to 42-42 thanks to the hard work of the veteran trio of Andries Posumah, Rommy Tanaka Patipeilohy and Rivelino Abuthan.

CLS went into the final quarter with a 59-58 lead, but quickly found itself on the defensive as forward Bintoro led Dwidasa's relentless charges. Bintoro scored 11 points and had one rebound in the fourth quarter to help his team seal the crucial win.

Altogether Bintoro scored 35 with six rebounds and two assists to take the Most Valuable Player tag of the match.

Dwidasa's team manager Andre Mamuaya said after the match that his team anticipated a hard-fought battle with Bima Sakti on Friday. But a win on Friday could be meaningless if defending champion Mahaka Satria Muda of Jakarta is upset by relegation by struggling Pacific Caesar of Surabaya.

For Pacific, a defeat on Friday would eliminate its chance of staying in the league next season.

"I think that as of Wednesday, Pacific was still sure that it was safe while we remained at the bottom of the standings. They didn't expect us to beat CLS today," Andre said.

"At least I can take a breather for a while now."

He blamed his club's poor performance on coach Ersa Putra, but he had yet to decide whether to extend his contract for next season. "We have a good physical trainer but our technical coach is less experience."

In a late match on Wednesday, home favorite Panasia Indosyntec continued its winning streak by crushing Bali Jeff Citra Satria Pelita (CSP) of Jakarta 93-71.

Panasia, the only non-Jakarta team to have reached the semifinals this year, is second in the table behind Aspac. Mahaka is third followed by IM.

The final four and championship matches will take place in Jakarta from Nov. 18 to Nov. 19. (ivy)