Dragons’ Tian Yuan shines as imports fail to find the net

PETALING JAYA: The Westports Malaysia Dragons are finding wins a little hard to come by after falling to a third straight defeat in the Asean Basketball League (ABL).

Prized world imports Marcus Marshall and AJ West have badly misfired in their last two games.

But where the imports have faltered, the team can still draw inspiration from Kuek Tian Yuan’s performance as they look to improve on their 3-7 record.

The 26-year-old Tian Yuan, who is in his seventh year with the club, gave a breakthrough performance for the Dragons during the 89-90 double overtime defeat to the Singapore Slingers last Sunday.

The 2m forward-centre gave arguably his best-ever showing in a Dragons jersey scoring 21 points and 15 rebounds.

It was just unfortunate that he fouled out late in the second overtime period as the Dragons’ attempt to overhaul a 19-point deficit fell short.

“Tian Yuan played absolutely the best game for the Dragons since I’ve been here,” gushed Dragons head coach Chris Thomas.

“He was excellent on both ends of the floor and played with an unmatched fire and intensity that our team really needed.

“I thought it was a tough call on him when he was whistled for his fifth and final foul during the second OT.

“But he didn’t do much wrong on the day. He did everything he was supposed to ... be active and aggressive in the paint and I’m proud of him for staying confident in his own abilities.”

The Dragons certainly need Tian Yuan to continue his fine production on the floor as they look to salvage a top-six finish to make the cut for the playoffs.

They will face Indonesia’s CLS Knights at the Maba Stadium this Sunday.