MACAO - Blackwater had a slow start against Seoul SK Knights and paid dearly for it in the form of a 93-77 loss Tuesday in the opener of the East Asia League Terrific 12 tournament at the Tap Seac Multisport Pavilion.
Former NBA player Jameel Warney had a near triple-double of 26 points, 14 rebounds, and eight assists for the Korean Basketball League (KBL) powerhouse, which controlled the match from start to finish.
The Elite, playing without hurting starters Bobby Ray Parks and Mike Digregorio, didn't fully get into the groove after struggling coming out of the gates and trailed by as much as 19 points late in the game.
Kim Min Soo added 18 points and six rebounds, while the Knights' other import Aaron Haynes finished with 16 points and eight rebounds.
Import Alex Stepheson finished with big numbers of 22 points and 22 rebounds in a losing cause for Blackwater, which had two key players in Marqus Blakely and Allein Maliksi also in foul trouble for most of the match.
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"We started the game really, really flat today," admitted Blackwater coach Aris Dimaunahan in the post-game interview.
"We can't let that happen as we play again tomorrow," he added.
The Elite have exactly 24 hours to recover from the loss as they face the Chiba Jets next in their final game in Group A.
Parks (Achilles injury) and Digregorio (flu) are both game time decisions again, according to Dimaunahan, so does big man Rabeh Al Hussaini and veteran playmaker Mike Cortez.
"It really hurt us big time, because I think we lost probably almost 38 points," said Dimaunahan about the absence of his four players.
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But despite a depleted roster, the Elite tried to make a fight out of it, outscoring the Knights, 10-2, to start the third quarter that tied the game at 46-all.
The Korean side though answered back with seven consecutive points to take control anew, 53-46, and never looked back.
Blakely collected 14 points, five rebounds, and five assists in his debut for the Elite as a late replacement for the injured Aaron Fuller. (RG)
The scores
Seoul SK Knights (93) - Warney 26, Kim M.S 18, Haynes 16, Jun An 12, Choi 7, Kim S.H . 7, Chon 3, Byun 3, Kim G. W. 1, Song 0, Choi B.K. 0, Choi S.W. 0.
Blackwater (77) - Stepheson 22, Blakely 14, Desiderio 12, Dario 9, Belo 5, Alolino 4, Sumang 4, Banal 3, Cruz 2, Maliksi 2, Salem 0.
Quarterscores: 24-19; 44-36; 73-61; 93-77.
