IMPORT Chris McCullough flirted with a double-double and led Strong Group Athletics to its second victory in the 34th Dubai International Basketball Championship, a 99-87 decision over home bet Al Nasr 99-87 yesterday at the Al Nasr Club.
Coming off the bench, McCullough had 31 points, nine rebounds, three assists and a block in almost 31 minutes of play.
Guard Mikey Williams also sparkled for the team with 16 points, four dimes and a rebound while Sean Ildefonso added 13 markers, four boards and two assists.
Strong Group had a field day from the outside, sinking 14 of 23 tries from the three-point area for a 60 percent clip and also had 24 assists to Al Nasr’s 14.
From a 73-61 lead, Strong Group momentarily lost control, allowing Al Nasr to close in at 77-72 at the 7:21 mark.
But McCullough stepped up and led a 15-0 run that gave Strong Group a 92-76 lead at the 3:09 mark and the team padded this to 99-81 en route to victory.
The duo of Harat Mohammed and Marvelle Haris paced Al Nasr with 34 and 30 points, respectively, and also had seven rebounds apiece.
Strong Group shoots for its third straight win on early Tuesday (Manila time) when it meets Lebanon’s Beirut First.
Earlier, import Samuel Deguera and the Zamboanga Valientes faltered in their opening game, yielding to UAE’s Al Sharjah Club 82-97.
Deguera, who stands 7-foot-6, dropped a double-double performance of 16 points and 11 rebounds for Valientes while Mike Tolomia had 14 markers, five assists and three boards.
