Coach Thomas urges Dragons to deliver the first blow

ALOR SETAR: Westports Malaysia Dragons head coach Chris Thomas has urged his team to be faster off the starting block.

And he’s looking at ways to channel the team’s energy in the right direction when they face Saigon Heat of Vietnam at the Maba Stadium tomorrow.

The Dragons expended much energy and time chasing the game against the Hong Kong Eastern after a slow start on Thursday.

They did well to close off a 22-point lead but ultimately fell short to lose 92-104.

It was the Dragons’ fifth straight loss. They are eighth in the nine-team league with a 3-9 record.

Thomas said: “Our starters need to take more pride in playing with effort and bring a winning mentality to the table immediately.

“We continue to get punched in the mouth first instead of being the ones who deliver the blow to our opponents.

“To our credit, we did rebound from the poor start. Joshua Munzon (30 points) was fantastic while Patrick Cabahug (10 points) played a solid overall game.

“But I need more from my other imports. The locals have continued to step up – especially the trio of (Kuek) Tian Yuan, (Wong) Yi Hou and Ivan (Yeo).

“We need to play with a more laser-like focus and funnel our energy into the right things.

“Otherwise, we are nothing more than a below-average team,” added Thomas.

The Dragons desperately need to get back to winning ways if they hope to gain a top six playoff spot.