HAT YAI, Thailand – Former Grace Christian High School star Danny Ching sparked a third-quarter uprising as Filipino-Chinese Veterans Basketball Association (FCVBA) beat host Thailand, 72-63, and advanced to the final round of the 60-and-above division of the 27th ASEAN Basketball Veterans Tournament on Thursday at the Prince Songkla University gym here.
The 5-foot-10 Ching led all FCVBA scorers with 15 points spiked by a buzzer-beating three at the half that proved to be the game-changer.
With Ching conspiring with Elmer Reyes, Aries Franco and Elmer Latonio, the FCVBA team outscored the hosts in the next frame, 25-11, to take a 60-47 advantage going into the final 10 minutes.
Franco then took charge in the fourth to finish with 13 points while Reyes and Latonio added 11 points each as they extended their winning streak to four games since the elims.
Ex-La Salle star Kenneth Yap scored only eight points this time but bowed to go all-out in their winner-take-all match against Pontianac of Indonesia on Friday.
The win somehow eased the pain suffered by the 65-and-over team, which lost to Sarawak of Malaysia, 40-38, early in the day.
“It was a tough loss but I’m still happy our 60s made it to the final,” said Ironcon Builders’ Jimi Lim, who bankrolled the delegation’s participation together with Rain or Shine co-team owner Terry Que and Freego’s Eduard Tio.
The 65-and-over team blew its own chance to score a three-peat after misfiring in the last four minutes that saw the Malaysians outscore it, 8-2.
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