ANDRAY Blatche delivered the coup de grace as Mighty Sports remained unbeaten in the 2020 Dubai International Basketball Tournament with a 77-72 escape against Syrian foe Al Ittihad of Aleppo Saturday (Manila time).
The naturalized center pumped in 28 points and 11 rebounds, capping his performance with the big three from the top of the arc with 54 seconds remaining that sealed the win for the Philippine side, 77-70.
Showing better cohesion in its second game together, Mighty went on a huge 17-0 run in the second quarter behind Renaldo Balkman to turn a 19-25 deficit into a 36-25 lead with 2:37 left in the first half.
The Puerto Rican reinforcement scored 10 of his 15 points in the quarter alone, to go with 10 rebounds and four assists as Mighty stayed top of Group B at 2-0 and sent Pinoy fans inside Shabab Al Ahli Club home with smiles on their faces.

Al Ittihad proved a worthy opponent, chipping at the lead away to get within five, 49-44, with 3:08 left in the third period. Mighty did restore order, responding with a superb 10-3 retort to grab a 12-point edge, 59-47 heading into the final frame.
McKenzie Moore added nine points, two boards, and two assists to make up for his six turnovers for Mighty.
Isaac Go also made a positive impact in the floor, being a plus-11 after tallying five points and three rebounds, as Jamie Malonzo collected six points in the win.
Helping the Charles Tiu-coached side was Al Ittihad's abysmal free throw shooting early on, going 1-of-11 before Aubrey Coleman's late barrage made it a 11-of-24 clip from the charity stripe.
Mighty, which is supported by Creative Pacific of Bong Cuevas, Go for Gold, Discovery Primea, Oriental Group, and Gatorade, will take the next two days off before facing ES Rades of Tunisia on Tuesday at 1 a.m. (Manila time).
Coleman, who took charge for the Syrian side with his 30 points and two rebounds, made things interesting by cutting the lead down to four, 74-70, in the final minute before Blatche's back-breaking three.
The scores:
MIGHTY SPORTS 77 - Blatche 28, Balkman 15, Moore 9, Malonzo 6, Go 5, Ildefonso 5, Kendrick 4, Belga 3, Ravena 2, Williams 0, Ju. Gomez de Liano 0.
AL ITTIHAD 72 - Coleman 30, Merjaneh 9, Saddir 8, Cheikh Ali 6, Alhamwi 5, Adribi 4, Saleh 4, Arbasha 4, Jilati 2, Aljabi 0.
Quarters: 19-23, 42-32, 59-47, 77-72.
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