HK Eastern escapes Alab in ABL opener

MANILA, Philippines — They’re not champions for nothing.

Reigning titleholders Hong Kong Eastern Sports Club weathered a late rally by Tanduay-Alab Pilipinas to escape with a 92-89 win in the opening game of the Sean Basketball League at the Mall of Asia Arena on Sunday night.

Christian Standhardinger drilled a midrange jumper with 34 seconds left in the game as HK tried to pull away from the Filipinos, 90-86.

Reigning MVP Bobby Parks Jr. responded with a gritty left-handed drive and drew a foul. His trip to the charity stripe cut the HK's lead to just a hairline. But the Filipino-German big man was just pedal to the metal.

Standhardinger hit another bucket with five seconds to go to keep his club in front. A heave by Josh Urbiztondo would’ve sent the game into overtime but the leather rattled out.

“We knew this is going to be a tough game,” said Marcus Elliot, the visitors’ top performing cager. “Everybody showed up … They kept pressuring [us].”

The visiting HK Eastern led by as many as 15 points in the going into the final frame. Alab was able to wrest the lead 74-73 but just couldn’t hold on to the advantage. 

The Filipinos will try to bounce back when they tackle the Singapore Slingers in Santa Rosa, Laguna, on November 29. 

HK Eastern, on the other hand, will lock horns with CLS Knights Indonesia on December 3.