Cần Thơ Catfish one step closer to playoff

Trương Hoàng Trung silences the crowd with a dagger shot from the three- point line. Photo courtesy of VBA

HCM CITY The Cần Thơ Catfish are more confident they will make the playoffs after a convincing 84-70 victory over the Đà Nẵng Dragons.

Before the game, the Dragons needed to overcome the Catfish to keep their hope of reaching the playoffs.

The Catfish made changes to their starting lineup. Accordingly, coach Lê Trần Minh Nghĩa used point guard Trương Hoàng Trung to replace reserve shooter Nguyễn Tuấn Anh.

In the first quarter, there was a tug-of-war between centres Max Allen and Yevgen Sakhniuk in the paint area. While Sakhniuk continuously scored with skillful maneuvers, Allen unexpectedly scored two three-pointers.

Other key players from the two teams also began to assert themselves. Both teams played neck and neck until the last second when Bryan Nguyễn successfully executed a three-pointer to help the Dragons temporarily lead at 22-19.

In the second quarter, when the close-range attacks were less effective, the two teams started to look for long-range shots.

Most of the three pointers of the Dragons came from Marquis Davison and Dương Đức Trí, while the Catfish had three points from Trương Hoàng Trung and Lê Hoàng Quân

The Dragons led 35-34 at halftime.

In the third quarter, Catfish captain Tâm Đinh had to leave the game due to a collision with a Dragons defender.

It seemed like the game was about to change direction, but the Dragons struggled to score, with only four players able to score at all throughout the game.

On the other hand, thanks to the timely brilliance of Lê Khắc Đăng Khoa and Đặng Thái Hưng, the Catfish increased their lead to 59-50.

In the last quarter, Marquis Davison and Bryan Nguyễn’s speed caused trouble for the Catfish defenders. The pressure from these players forced the Catfish’s main players Trương Hoàng Trung and Đặng Thái Hưng to leave the court due to their fifth personal fouls.

Despite the loss of many key players, the quality from the bench still helped the guests maintain their advantage. In the end, the Catfish won with a score of 84-70.

Sakhniuk, the all-around center for the Catfish, was named Player of the Game with 21 points, 16 rebounds and seven assists.

“This game was very difficult. We lost Tâm Đinh in the early stage due to injury, and many of our other key players also had problems with personal fouls. Maintaining solidarity, along with the bench players and young players stepping up, helped the team win,” said coach Lê Trần Minh Nghĩa.

After this result, the Catfish are still in top three of the league’s standings, while the Dragons are in fifth place. Both teams will meet again on Sunday (August 25). If the Catfish win that game, they will advance to the playoffs, while the Dragons will be out of the race. VNS