Strong Group breezes past Aussie squad to go 2-0 in Jones Cup

MANILA, Philippines — Strong Group-Pilipinas cruised to a 91-69 win over BSBL Guardians of Australia to stay perfect in the 43rd William Jones Cup Saturday in Taipei.

Chris McCullough churned out 23 points and seven rebounds laced by a steal and a block in only 22 minutes of play as the Philippine representative climbed to 2-0 in the nine-team tourney.

It was also McCullough, the former PBA champion import from San Miguel Beer, who led Strong Group to a 104-79 win over the United Arab Emirates in the opener with a complete line of 15 points, seven rebounds, five assists and four steals.

He drew a bevy of support once again spearheaded by Gilas Pilipinas naturalized player Ange Kouame with 16 points and 10 rebounds after settling for nine points and three rebounds in their debut win.

American reinforcement Tajuan Agee added 14 while Jordan Heading, Dave Ildefonso and RJ Abarrientos chipped in nine, seven and six points, respectively.

Like its strong 32-18 start against UAE, Strong Group got off to the races with a 34-10 upperhand in the opening salvo on its way to another 22-point blowout win.

Jesse Ghee (19), Atem Bior (14), Angus Howey (12) and Dhieu Magier (12) had their numbers but the Australian ball club still folded to the potent Philippine squad under the guidance of coach Charles Tiu.

BSBL Guardians slid to 0-2 after also bowing to Future Sports USA, 69-65.

Strong Group will try to score its third straight win against Ukraine at 5 p.m. Monday before facing Malaysia, Future Sports USA, Japan U22, China White and China Blue, in the single-round eliminations that will have the No.1 team as the champion right away.

The Philippine quintet is eyeing to bring home the country's seventh title since last winning the invitational tourney in 2019 courtesy of Mighty Sports also under the tutelage of Tiu.