In a game that was well worth the price of admission, the Mekong Tigers put a stop to a furious Extra Joss Fighters rally to take the CBL Championship's final game 82-80 on Saturday afternoon.
The Tigers looked like they were cruising to an easy championship win at halftime, and by the beginning of the third they had a 20-point lead. Matt Van Pelt saved his best for last, draining 6 three-pointers in the game and keeping the offense moving smoothly with crisp passing. He led the Tigers with 28 points, and would have had more than his 6 assists if some of his pinpoint passes had been caught and put away for scores.
But Stephen Siruma and Jomar Santos refused to go out with a whimper, almost singlehandedly bringing their team back in a furious rally at the end of the 3rd quarter. With Siruma taking over at point guard, Santos erupted half way through the third with 17 points. Despite double and triple teams once it was clear he had the hot hand, he was unstoppable, scoring both from inside and outside.
Santos finished the game with 41 points, more than half of his team's entire output. Siruma had 24 points.
"The reality is Siruma and Santos are great players for this league and they went on a tear, and the Tigers couldn't stop them, plain and simple," said Mekong Tigers owner Josh Galt.
By the end of the third, it was a one point game, and within a few minutes, Extra Joss had built up a five point lead. But Jermaine Lattimore, the Tigers' rock down low, and Van Pelt refused to let the game get away from them. Lattimore was a monster on the boards again, and despite some inspired play from Extra Joss big man Ken Gadaffi, almost every rebound found its way into his hands.
The game stayed close throughout the 4th quarter, with both teams trading points back and forth until the last seconds. But a big three pointer from Santos was followed up with an equally clutch three from Van Pelt, and foul shots from both him and Lattimore gave the Tigers a two point lead.
Extra Joss kept fans on the edge of their seats with some tight defense, but in the end they ran out of time.
"They gave us a battle, a lot of credit to Extra Joss. They made us work for it, so it definitely wasn’t easy," Van Pelt said after the game. "It feels good to get a close victory like this."
The Tigers, who have been without a head coach for the finals, have had to rely on their assistant coach Sambath Phanchan and player-coaches Van Pelt and Phann Dara for game planning and management, and a few key changes made the difference.
"We went to a 3-2 zone this game instead of man-to-man like last game. It worked in the first half, but their shooters came alive in the second half," Van Pelt said. "We also put in more of a framework on offense."
Lattimore also cited the move to a zone defense as a key change that helped propel the Tigers. "The move to a 3-2 helped us stop Santos and Siruma from getting into the lane," he said.
Gadaffi said Extra Joss was hurt by the slow start, but was proud of the way the team battled back and kept it close until the last seconds.
"We didn't start well, and the Mekong Tiger came out smoking in the first 2 quarters. Down by 20 points, we had no choice but to fight back to avoid a humiliating defeat," he said. "It was disappointing in the end, but we are proud of our achievements. The stakes are higher now and Cambodia basketball is definitely improving."
For team owner Galt, winning the third CBL championship ever and securing the 12 million riel prize were great accomplishments, but he was also proud of the league itself for putting on such a great game.
"Championships should be hard-fought, exciting, and full of suspense. It should be up to the players, decided by whatever team makes just one more play at the end," he said. "That's what makes sports so great, and that's why you have to play the games, sometimes it's just a matter of how the ball bounces, and who puts themselves in position to make that one final play to take advantage of it."