Siliwangi teeters on brink of relegation

Siliwangi teeters on brink of relegation

JAKARTA (JP): Siliwangi's hopes of improving its ranking
vanished with its 49-70 crushing by Cahaya Lestari Surabaya (CLS)
on Sunday during the second day of the 1999 A Mild Kobatama
national basketball league series at Senayan Basketball Hall.

While Siliwangi will have to try to escape relegation by
winning the playoffs, Mahaka Satria Muda (SM) maintained its
position in the top four and will likely face the league's top
ranked Aspac or second-placed Panasia Indosyntec.

Mahaka SM squeaked by Pacific Bank Swadesi of Surabaya, East
Java, in a nail-biting 66-65 win on Sunday. SM was apparently
inspired by its defeat of defending champion Panasia Indosyntec
73-53 (33-20) in the last game on Saturday evening.

Siliwangi, which finished 10th in the team standings, will
likely vie with ninth-ranked Citra Satria Pelita (CSP) in the
playoffs for two spots in next year's league. Siliwangi is
winless in its 14 outings in this year's league.

Siliwangi ended the first half trailing by a respectable 27-
29.

But experience really counted in the next half. Siliwangi,
which consists of junior players from West Java who are being
groomed for the 2000 National Games (PON), could not keep up with
the fast pace of the Surabaya club.

Siliwangi's coach Srigiyanto admitted his players lacked the
experience to trouble Kobatama.

"They performed poorly. They are still young and do not have
much experience," he said.

SM surpassed Pacific in playing skills, with the latter team's
players appearing demoralized after losing 39-28 in the first
half.

Pacific almost equalized in the final minute before the end of
the second half, but SM's Fictor G. Roring and Bayu Radityo were
awarded free throws which increased the score to 66-62.

Only one second before the referee blew the final whistle,
Pacific's shooting guard Winoto Tjandra executed a three-pointer.

"I was very late in scoring. We should have made it earlier.
My teammates regained their fighting spirit in the last minute
when they saw that they could equalize with Mahaka," Winoto, who
was invited to defend Pacific in the fifth series, said after the
match.

SM kept Panasia from developing its strategy. Panasia played
poorly and lost 20-33 in the first half.

In the second half, Panasia continued to appear out of sorts
and was unable to establish a rhythm.

"We didn't expect to lose this game. All of us played very
well but Mahaka played better than us. We'll meet in the final
four," I Gede Agus Wahyudi, Panasia's forward, said. (ivy)