Anticlimax of Prawira at the Crossroads of Asia

JAKARTA, KOMPAS — Hope Prawira Harum Bandung to qualify for the main round of the Basketball Champions League or BCL Asia 2024 was buried on the last day of qualifying . Yudha Saputera and his colleagues failed to catch up with another Indonesian representative, Pelita Jaya Basketball, after being beaten by a team from Malaysia, NS Matrix Deers.

Prawira managed to force an extension after being left behind by 15 points in the first half at Britama Arena Stadium on Friday night (April 26, 2024) WIB. However, they again struggled to match the intensity of Matrix in the extra time period. Matrix won 91-87 and secured the final ticket to the main round.

The Matrix's foreign guard, Damion Rosser, became a hero with a contribution of 25 points in just under 17 minutes. He replaced foreign forward Jordan Tolbert, who was fouled late in the fourth quarter, then scored 9 points in the extra period. "I just try to always be ready whenever needed," he said.

Prawira's foreign forward, Brandone Francis, was no less impressive with a total contribution of 31 points and 5 rebounds. However, he was also the one who closed down his team's chances of winning at the end of the match. With 23 seconds remaining and Prawira only trailing by three points 84-87, he made a turnover. Mastery turns around for Matrix.

Also read: Difference between Prawira and Pelita Jaya in the Asian Champions League

Prawira Head Coach, David Singleton, said that his team had lost in terms of intensity from the start. They also lacked unity on both sides of the field. That's what made them trail 33-48 in the first half. Matrix led the score for 38 minutes and 52 seconds while Prawira only led for less than 4 minutes.

"This is not our standard performance. Many things did not go as planned, including our attacks and everything else. Not to make excuses, but it seems like we were not physically prepared. The players appeared tired. This trend has been noticeable in the last five matches, including in the IBL (Indonesian Basketball League)," said Singleton.

Prawira's defeat was caused by two main factors, namely the area in defense and turnover. The Matrix foreign players, Rosser, Taishaun Johnson (24 points), and Tolbert (14 points), were very aggressive in targeting penetration into the basket area. The team coached by coach Felton Sealey was able to record 48 points in the colored area or paint area.

This is not our performance standard. A lot of things didn't go to plan, our attacks and everything else.

After conceding 28 points from the paint area in the first half, Prawira's defense improved in the third half. They only conceded 2 points in 10 minutes. However, after that, the intensity in Prawira's defense decreased again in the last 15 minutes. Meanwhile, Matrix only scored 12 points from three-point shots.

Matrix also scored a lot of easy scores from transitions or fast breaks, 24 points. They took advantage of the "rain" of turnover from the Prawira players. Matrix scored 26 points from 20 opponents' turnovers. Prawira was only able to produce 15 points from the turnover Matrix. Prawira's attacks did not flow as usual, more individual actions.

Also read: All Teams Hunt Pelita Jaya

Prawira had to settle for third place in the second round of qualifying group standings with only one win out of three matches. Matrix (2 wins, 1 loss) followed in second place. Meanwhile, the top of the Pelita Jaya standings has secured a spot in the next round after defeating Prawira last Wednesday.

"With all the limitations, I actually still believe that we can win, but apparently we can't yet. In the end, this is a valuable lesson for us in playing in two competitions at once. This result will make us grow in the future. I appreciate the players who have helped us qualify from the first round of qualifiers," explained Singleton.

Prawira's local players were unable to make a difference at the Britama Arena. Prawira's captain, who has guard status for the Indonesian national team, Yudha Saputera, was able to score 10 points and 5 assists. However, he also made 7turnovers. The number of errors is the highest compared to other players.

According to Yudha, BCL is quite different from IBL. "Here, physical strength has to be stronger because many fouls are not given. Usually in IBL, fouls are given. This result is a very important lesson for the future (in both BCL and IBL). I myself do not feel like I am in my best performance," he said.

The surprising advancement of Matrix to the main round is quite unexpected. They, with one win and two losses, only ranked third in the group in the first round of qualification. Rosser and his colleagues also lost to Prawira 94-105 and Hong Kong Eastern 73-80 in Ulan Bator, Mongolia. They avenged those defeats against the two teams in Jakarta.

"Children were very focused from the beginning today. This victory is about the great struggle of the whole team. We come with the aim of winning tickets to the main round. I am proud and cannot wait to face the challenges in the next round. Of course, we have to be more prepared because the level of competition will be higher," said Sealey, coach of Matrix.