Filipinos fall short in NBA 2K League APAC Invitational title bid

MANILA, Philippines — Filipino teams Laus Group Esports (LGE) Eagles and LGE Agila both fell to Australia and New Zealand-based squad and defending champion No Way Out  in the 2024 NBA 2K League (2KL) APAC Invitational held over the weekend at the SM Mall of Asia Music Hall in Pasay City.

In a battle between Australia-New Zealand and the Philippines, the first semifinals matchup saw LGE Eagles sweep Team Lock Up, 60-45, 63-53, to ensure at that least one Filipino team would be in the grand finals. On the other side of the bracket was a rematch of last year's semifinals with LGE Agila (last year's LGE 45ers). The defending champions not only advanced by the skin of their teeth as small forward Dylan “Jhxnno-” Johnson made a 3-pointer at the buzzer in Game 3 to prevent overtime and take the series.

"A shot like that doesn't come around often, and the fact that I actually put the ball into the hoop to win the game, it means so much to me,” Johnson said after their win.

"I don't even know what the plan was. I just had hope that my teammates would just see me and hit me. Usually, when it comes to that final shot, the cornerman is who's going to take that shot. And I'm just happy that Harry, my teammate, was able to hit me and find me open. And I still can't believe the shot went in,” he added.

In the finals, No Way Out kept its winning momentum, taking Game 1 after an explosive second half to keep the Filipinos at bay, 52-44. Game 2 also saw a strong start from the Australian-New Zealand team as it made multiple 3-pointers, taking a 17-point lead  in the first half only for LGE Eagles to answer back in the second half with steals and offensive rebounds to close the gap to two points.

In the final seconds of the game, LGE Eagles managed to take possession to set-up a three-point play at the buzzer to stay alive, only for the ball to meet the rim, giving No Way Out its second APAC Invitational title.

"It feels good [to be back-to-back champions]. It's an honor coming out to events like this. Not many people get to do it, [to] play in front of a big crowd, and get out of their room and play. So it feels good to be back-to-back winners,” said No Way Out captain Solomona “Monuhh” Faitaua-Nanai.

Players from both teams may face each other again, this time in the eFIBA Season 3 World Finals happening in Clark, Pampanga this December.