His dunks were a treat and his ‘rim-hanging’ antics brought loud cheers from the crowd. International Sejin Mathew came up with a sterling show as Kochi Tigers kept their cool under pressure and pulled off a stunning 78-73 victory over favourite Chennai Heat in the Indian National Basketball League at the Rajiv Gandhi indoor stadium here on Monday night.
It was Kochi’s second straight win in the six-team league and for Chennai, its first loss in two matches.
The Kochi boys bottled up Chennai star Baladhaneshwar for a good part of the match with point guard Lalrina Renthlei doing an effective dance in front of him. And captain Sejin and centre A.S. Sharath did a good job with the rebounds. That was one department where Chennai looked weak.
Kochi enjoyed a 52-40 lead early in the third quarter but midway through the last, Chennai levelled at 68. But Kochi regained the lead at 73-71 and Renthlei’s three-pointer with a minute to go helped the home side breathe easy.
Indian captain Muin Bek Hafeez and A. Surya were Chennai’s leading scorers.
Meanwhile, Chandigarh Warriors, who had four players who had helped Punjab to the silver medal at the recent National Games, defeated Mumbai Titans 101-72 while Bengaluru Kings edged past Delhi Dribblers 109-106 in an extra-time thriller.
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