By ADRIAN STEWART CO

Negrense Samjosef Belangel and the Daegu Korea Gas Corporation Pegasus climbed to solo first place in the Korean Basketball League (KBL) after a 91-76 rout of the Seoul SK Knights at the Daegu Gymnasium on Sunday, November 3.

The Negrense guard finished the match with 12 points, five assists, two steals, one rebound, and one block as the Pegasus surged to their fifth consecutive victory for solo first place in the standings with a 6-1 mark.

Andrew Nicholson led the way with a double-double of 25 points and 11 rebounds, Kwak Jeong-hoon added 16 markers, while Kim Nak-Hyeon ended with 14 points for Pegasus.

“We committed a lot of turnovers in the first quarter. It’s the same as the previous game. However, everyone played their promised defense well, in particular, they focused well in the fourth quarter,” Daegu head coach Kang Hyuk said.

“I think the players’ shots went in because they played defense well. I also ordered them to have organic movement in the second half in terms of passing and, as a result, many players got chances,” he added.

Jameel Warney finished with a double-double of 34 points and 10 rebounds, An Young-jun added 21 markers, while Juan Gomez de Liaño ended scoreless in four minutes as the SK Knights dropped to a 4-2 win-loss slate.

Meanwhile, Carl Tamayo failed to sustain his strong start as the Changwon LG Sakers suffered their third consecutive defeat, bowing to Miguel Oczon and the Ulsan Hyundai Mobis Phoebus, 76-69.

Tamayo made his presence felt early with nine first quarter points, but he was unable to add to it since then as the LG Sakers dropped to a 3-3 record.

He also ended with four steals and two rebounds.

Oczon, for his part, contributed two points, two rebounds, two assists, and a steal in almost 15 minutes of action as the Mobis Phoebus returned to their winning ways with a 4-2 win-loss card./ASC, WDJ