Abarrientos’ 21 not enough as Ulsan suffers OT loss to Alvano, Wonju

MANILA, Philippines – RJ Abarrientos once again saw his high-scoring performance for the Ulsan Hyundai Mobis Phoebus wasted as they suffered a 94-90 overtime loss to Ethan Alvano and the Wonju DB Promy in the Korean Basketball League (KBL) on Saturday, January 7.

Abarrientos sizzled from long distance, burying 7 of his 14 treys to wind up with 21 points, on top of 2 rebounds, 5 assists, and a steal in a little less than 32 minutes of action.

The former FEU standout converted on a cold-blooded long bomb with 31.3 seconds left in regulation to tie the game at 77-all. He then assisted on Lee Woosuk’s crucial jumper with 2.7 seconds remaining, which ultimately dragged Wonju into overtime as Alvano’s potential game-winning three at the buzzer failed to hit the mark.

In the extra period, Abarrientos drained two more triples to keep Ulsan within the game, but his red-hot shooting proved not enough as Wonju escaped with the win.

Kim Jong-kyu and Dewan Hernandez led Wonju with 18 points each, while Kang Sang-jae collected 17 markers, 8 boards, and 6 dimes.

The Filipino-American guard Alvano struggled from the field as he connected on just 3 of his 12 shots to finish with 9 points, but dished out a team-high 8 assists, along with 3 rebounds, and 3 steals.

For Ulsan, Lee dropped a game-high 23 points, while Gaige Prim recorded a double-double of 19 points and 14 rebounds.

With the victory, Alvano’s Wonju hiked its record to 12-18, while Abarrientos’ Ulsan slid to 16-13.

Meanwhile, Justin Gutang’s near double-double outing also went for naught as the Changwon LG Sakers bowed to the Goyang Carrot Jumpers, 73-64.

Gutang, the ex-College of St. Benilde swingman, tallied 8 points on 4-of-9 shooting and 8 rebounds for Changwon, which moved down to 16-12.

Finally, SJ Belangel’s Daegu KOGAS Pegasus notched their second straight win after defeating the Seoul Samsung Thunders, 83-77. 

Belangel, however, did not see action for Daegu, which improved its record to 12-16. – Rappler.com