Tajuan Agee proves to be a stabilizer, while Kiefer Ravena and RJ Abarrientos deliver timely hits as Strong Group wins the Philippines its seventh Jones Cup crown by going unbeaten in eight games

MANILA, Philippines – Strong Group-Pilipinas reclaimed the William Jones Cup crown for the Philippines after a thrilling 83-79 overtime win over Chinese Taipei-Blue in the virtual championship match on Sunday, July 21.

American import Tajuan Agee proved to be a stabilizer, while locals Kiefer Ravena and RJ Abarrientos delivered timely hits as Strong Group won the Philippines its seventh Jones Cup title by going unbeaten in eight games.

Steady at the line, Agee finished with 21 points on a perfect 9-of-9 free throw clip to go with 9 rebounds, while Abarrientos and Ravena chipped in 14 and 9 points, respectively, on a combined 7-of-14 from beyond the arc.

Chris McCullough struggled with 12 points on a paltry 4-of-16 shooting and fouled out in the extra period, but his basket off a goaltending gave Strong Group an 80-78 edge – a lead big enough to fend off the Taiwanese.

Strong Group hikes its record to 5-0 as it wins by at least 20 points for the fourth time following another dominant performance from Chris McCullough

DJ Fenner added 15 points and 9 rebounds for Strong Group, which became the first team from the Philippines to rule the Jones Cup since Mighty Sports won in 2019.

All hope seemed lost for Strong Group in regulation after the hosts grabbed a 71-64 lead before the visitors unloaded a 9-0 run capped by a clutch Ravena three-pointer to seize the upper hand at 73-71.

But Chinese Taipei-Blue knotted the score at 73-73 after a Gil Baker putback and eventually forced overtime after Ravena missed his potential game-winning jumper.

Chinese Taipei-Blue absorbed its first loss and finished with a 7-1 record.

FINAL: Strong Group-Pilipinas reclaims the William Jones Cup title for the Philippiens with an 83-79 overtime escape over Chinese Taipei-Blue
PHILIPPINES 83-79: DJ Fenner 1/2 with his free throws
PHILIPPINES 82-79: Jordan Heading swishes two freebies with 12.2 seconds left
PHILIPPINES 80-79: Jianhao Ma with a crucial split from the line with 14.4 seconds remaining
PHILIPPINES 80-78: Chris McCullough scores off a goaltending
78-78: Cheng Liu nails two more from the line
PHILIPPINES 78-76: Cheng Liu hits two charities
PHILIPPINES 78-74: Tajuan Agee remains perfect from the line after making two more free throws
PHILIPPINES 76-74: Cheng Liu goes 1/2 from the line
PHILIPPINES 76-73: RJ Abarrientos starts the extra period with a corner triple

Fourth quarter

END OF REGULATION: Kiefer Ravena misses the potential game-winning jumper as Strong Group and Chinese Taipei-Blue head into overtime, 73-73
73-73: Gil Baker ties the game with a putback
PHILIPPINES 73-71: Kiefer Ravena with the go-ahead three for Strong Group with 13.2 seconds to play
CHINESE TAIPEI 71-70: Tajuan Agee cuts the deficit to just 1 point after calmly sinking two free throws with 19.5 seconds remaining
CHINESE TAIPEI 71-68: Kiefer Ravena steals and feeds Jordan Heading for a layup
CHINESE TAIPEI 71-66: Tajuan Agee makes it a five-point game with 50.7 seconds left
CHINESE TAIPEI 71-64: Zeng Xiangjun lays it in
CHINESE TAIPEI 69-64: Ying-Chun Chen steps back for a long two
CHINESE TAIPEI 67-64: RJ Abarrientos with a much-needed three for Strong Group
CHINESE TAIPEI 67-61: Zeng Xiangjun hits the bonus
CHINESE TAIPEI 66-61: Zeng Xiangjun with a basket, plus the foul
CHINESE TAIPEI 64-61: RJ Abarrientos answers with his own trey
CHINESE TAIPEI 64-58: Zeng Xiangjun with a wide-open three
CHINESE TAIPEI 61-58: Chris McCullough splits his freebies
CHINESE TAIPEI 61-57: Ying-Chun Chen pulls up from deep as Strong Group calls a timeout with 6:42 to play
CHINESE TAIPEI 58-57: Back-and-forth battle as Jianhao Ma converts on a layup
PHILIPPINES 57-56: Tajuan Agee puts Strong Group back up with a jumper
CHINESE TAIPEI 56-55: Gil Baker gives Chinese Taipei the lead with a free throw
55-55: Zeng Xiangjun ties the game with a layup
PHILIPPINES 55-53: Jianhao Ma opens the final period with a long bomb

Third quarter

END OF 3Q: Strong Group hangs on to a slim 55-50 edge over the surging Chinese Taipei-Blue
PHILIPPINES 55-50: Ange Kouame with a putback
PHILIPPINES 53-50: Ying-Chun Chen from way downtown
PHILIPPINES 53-47: Chris McCullough gets two free throws to go
PHILIPPINES 51-47: Gil Baker hook shot is good
PHILIPPINES 51-45: DJ Fenner buries his second triple
PHILIPPINES 48-45: Adam Hinton uncorks a long bomb
PHILIPPINES 48-42: DJ Fenner answers with his own mid-range hit
PHILIPPINES 46-42: Robert Hinton nails the short jumper
PHILIPPINES 46-40: Shih Hsuan Su skies for a tough reverse finish
PHILIPPINES 46-38: Tajuan Agee swishes from outside
PHILIPPINES 43-38: Chris McCullough and Robert Hinton exchange buckets
PHILIPPINES 41-36: Gil Baker starts the second half with an undergoal stab

Second quarter

HALFTIME: Strong Group stays ahead of Chinese Taipei-Blue with a 41-34 lead
PHILIPPINES 41-34: Tajuan Agee completes an and-one
PHILIPPINES 38-34: Quick 6-0 blast by Chinese Taipei after a Ying-Chun Chen long bomb
PHILIPPINES 38-31: Robert Hinton makes the defense pay with a wide-open trey
PHILIPPINES 38-28: Tajuan Agee bullies his way inside for a layup

PHILIPPINES 36-28: Robert Hinton connects on his first free throw, but misses the second one
PHILIPPINES 36-27: Chris McCullough 1/2 from the line
PHILIPPINES 35-27: Shih Hsuan Su cans a trey
PHILIPPINES 35-24: Gil Baker and Chris McCullough trade jumpers
PHILIPPINES 33-22: Tajuan Agee gets open for a three
PHILIPPINES 30-22: 6-0 run for Strong Group after two free throws by DJ Fenner
PHILIPPINES 28-22: RJ Abarrientos makes two free throws
PHILIPPINES 26-22: Rhenz Abando adds two more from the stripe
PHILIPPINES 24-22: Ying-Chun Chen answers with his own pair of freebies
PHILIPPINES 24-20: DJ Fenner drains two charities
PHILIPPINES 22-20: Cheng Liu banks in a putback
PHILIPPINES 22-18: Rhenz Abando splits his foul shots
PHILIPPINES 21-18: DJ Fenner cleans up RJ Abarrientos’ miss
PHILIPPINES 19-18: RJ Abarrientos gets it to go from long distance
CHINESE TAIPEI 18-16: Jin Wei Gao floats one in
16-16: Cheng Liu ties the game with a technical free throw
PHILIPPINES 16-15: Adam Hinton for three

First quarter

END OF 1Q: Strong Group leads Chinese Taipei-Blue in a low-scoring battle, 16-12
PHILIPPINES 16-12: Back-to-back threes by Strong Group as DJ Fenner hits from deep
PHILIPPINES 13-12: Rhenz Abando lets it fly from beyond the arc
CHINESE TAIPEI 12-10: Adam Hinton pulls up from mid-range
10-10: Robert Hinton still on fire as he drills another triple
PHILIPPINES 10-7: Tajuan Agee goes 2/2 from the line
PHILIPPINES 8-7: Robert Hinton scores again for Chinese Taipei
PHILIPPINES 8-5: Robert Hinton fires from deep, Kiefer Ravena counters with his second trey
PHILIPPINES 5-2: Kiefer Ravena lights it up from long distance
2-2: Chris McCullough stops and pops for a mid-range jumper
CHINESE TAIPEI 2-0: Gil Baker starts the scoring with a teardrop

Starters

PHILIPPINES: Kiefer Ravena, Jordan Heading, Caelen Tiongson, Chris McCullough, Tajuan Agee

Preview

Strong Group-Pilipinas goes for gold in its highly productive 2024 William Jones Cup campaign as it stakes its undefeated 7-0 record against fellow top squad Chinese Taipei-Blue in Taiwan on Sunday, July 21.

Already beyond avenging Rain or Shine-Philippines’ lackluster run last year, the undermanned yet talented Strong Group looks for a perfect finish this time around as the likes of super import Chris McCullough and all-around guards Jordan Heading and RJ Abarrientos continue to fire on all cylinders.

Even without naturalized Filipino Ange Kouame, Fil-Am veteran Caelan Tiongson, defense-first import Tajuan Agee, and Gilas Pilipinas high-flyer Rhenz Abando in the active roster, the Charles Tiu-coached squad proved it has more than enough firepower after last blasting Chinese Taipei-White, 96-70.

McCullough lived at the line for 25 points on 10-of-13 free throws, while backcourt partners Kiefer Ravena and Abarrientos scored 14 and 13, respectively, to help keep Strong Group undefeated in the weeklong tournament with a brutal daily schedule, where the team with the best record at the end of the single round-robin bags the title.

Expect the same core to keep up its stellar play as the prime Chinese Taipei team comes knocking on Sunday evening, carrying its own unbeaten slate.

But Tiu said Abando and Kouame will play through their injuries, while Agee will be a game-time decision as the American import was discharged from the hospital on Saturday after suffering from food poisoning.

“Rhenz’s hand is still swollen and the same goes for Ange’s knee, but they will play through it since this is an all-or-nothing game,” said Tiu. “They know how important this game is for the country.”

Tiu added: “We will be watching Agee’s minutes closely since he has been very dehydrated because of the gastro issues he suffered. His health is important, but his presence on the court is also crucial for us.”

Strong Group aims to keep its 43rd Jones Cup run spotless until the very end, while home team Chinese Taipei-Blue looks to ruin the visitors’ party with a last-minute golden heist.

Tip off is at 7 pm. – Rappler.com