By ADRIAN STEWART CO

Negrense Samjosef Belangel had another fine performance as the Daegu Korea Gas Corporation Pegasus edged the Anyang Jung Kwan Jang Red Boosters, 84-77, in the Korean Basketball League (KBL) at the Anyang Arena on Sunday night, January 5.

The former Ateneo de Manila University Blue Eagles star guard tallied 11 points, on 5-of-14 field goal shooting, to go with seven assists and three rebounds as the Pegasus improved to 14-10.

Youssopha Ndoye stepped up in the absence of Andrew Nicholson with a double-double of 21 points and 19 rebounds, while Shin Seung-min, Lee Dae-heon and Jeon Hyun-woo had 17, 16 and 10, respectively, for the Pegasus.

“We were physically stressed before the start, but we focused from the first quarter, basic rebounds,” Pegasus head coach Kang Hyuk said.

“Our players have also greatly improved their sense of responsibility,” he added.

Park Ji-hoon finished with 23 points to lead the Red Boosters, Bae Byeong-jun added 18 markers, while Javi Gomez de Liaño was scoreless in three minutes as they dropped to a 7-18 record.

Meanwhile, Carl Tamayo provided an offensive spark in his return as the Changwon LG Sakers defeated the Goyang Sono Skygunners, 67-64, at the Changwon Gymnasium.

The former University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons big man finished with 17 points as the LG Sakers snapped a two-game losing skid to improve to a 14-12 win-loss slate.

“My body is fine. However, it’s been difficult to find my rhythm after returning to the game after the injury,” Tamayo said in a post-game interview.

“I’m trying to find my rhythm quickly,” he added.

Yu Ki-sang chipped in 13 markers, while Darryl Monroe had a near triple-double performance of 10 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists for Changwon.

DJ Burns, Jr. finished with 18 points to lead the Skygunners, while Min Ki-nam added 10 markers as they dropped to a 9-17 win-loss slate./ASC, WDJ