Hoang Phuc and Son Minh Tan scored "clutch", the Dolphins went upstream in Can Tho
Many difficulties appeared with Nha Trang Dolphins during their trip to Cantho Catfish on the evening of July 23.
Right from the first half, they soon received cold water with Madarious Gibbs being sent off immediately for throwing the ball at DeAngelo Hamilton's head.
Gibbs was originally the conductor of the team, so he left the field, leaving a big hole for the Nha Trang Dolphins. To make matters worse, Dominique Tham was hurt after a collision with DeAngelo Hamilton and was friends with the bench for the entire fourth half.
Taking advantage of this, Cantho Catfish created a 13-point lead and proved to be straight to victory at home. But that scenario did not happen.
Due to not being able to "finish" the Nha Trang Dolphins even though the opponent had lost two of the most important players on the team, Cantho Catfish received a "recovery wound" at the end of the 4th round.
After a series of unsuccessful scoring situations, Catfish received two extremely "clutch" scoring phases of two Dolphins internal soldiers, Nguyen Hoang Phuc and Son Minh Tam.
Hoang Phuc had an extremely confident breakthrough situation and finished close to the basket correctly. In the next phase, Nha Trang defended well to open up a quick counterattack. Son Minh Tam went to the basket and-1 to determine the victory for the away team.
The final whistle sounded with the final victory of 80-78 belonging to the Nha Trang Dolphins. They completed an extremely unbelievable comeback, showing impressive solidarity with many different individuals speaking out, especially internal soldiers.
Meanwhile, Cantho Catfish once again suffered a bitter defeat. Last time they fell in extra time, this time they couldn't beat a team that lost two of the most important players in the squad.
The Player of The Game title went to Robert Sampson with 24 points (9-17 FG) along with 20 rebounds, 2 steals and 2 assists. Dominique Tham had 24 points, 8 rebounds and 3 steals, but he had to leave the field in the third half because of an injury.
The internal army duo that set the victory for Nha Trang Dolphins are also the remaining two outstanding players. Son Minh Tam has 8 points (2-4 3PT) and Nguyen Hoang Phuc has 9 points, 4 assists and 3 steals.
Cantho Catfish and Brachon Griffin scored the most points with 29 points (9-19 FG) with 9 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 steals. DeAngelo Hamilton had 16 points, 20 rebounds and 6 blocks. Michael Soy contributed 18 points with 2 steals and 2 assists.
Although the finish was very effective in the 2-point area, Catfish had an unforgettable long throw day with only 9-29 3PT. Soy and Griffin are the only two names to successfully throw 3 points for Catfish this match, but they also have a total of 3-21 3PT.
Thus, Cantho Catfish has ended a series of 3 matches but has not yet won a victory to entertain fans.
They will have their first trip in the second phase of VBA 2023 with a match against Ho Chi Minh City Wings at 19:30 pm on July 28. This is the starting point for Catfish's 5 matches away from home, against teams in Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi and Da Nang, respectively.
Meanwhile, Nha Trang Dolphins will board a plane to the Capital to continue a series of 6 consecutive away matches. Their opponent is Hanoi Buffaloes, the match will tip-off on the evening of July 29.
