STRONG Group-Philippines cruised to an 81-54 win over Qatar to remain unbeaten in the 44th William Jones Cup, dispatching Qatar, 81-54, Tuesday night at the Xinzhuang Gymnasium.

Strong Group improved to 3-0 (win-loss) in what has been a rampaging start to its title-retention bid. The victory allowed Strong Group to stay close with Bahrain, which leads the nine-nation field with a perfect 4-0 card.

Qatar fell to 1-2.

Strong Group has now won 11th straight dating back to last year where it also went undefeated en route to copping the championship crown.

DJ Fenner and Javi Gomez de Liano powered Strong Group against Qatar by combining for 36 points. Fenner tallied 18 points, seven rebounds, and one assist, while Gomez de Liano came away with 18 points on a hot 7-of-11 shooting clip.

Gomez de Liano unloaded 13 points of his total output in the second half, helping Strong quell Qatar’s comeback bid.

Ian Miller added 10 points and nine boards while Dave Ildefonso pitched in eight points, five assists, and three rebounds.

The top scorer in Strong Group’s first two wins, former NBA player Andre Roberson struggled offensively but contributed in other departments as he tallied 10 rebounds, three assists, two blocks, and two steals.(CCM)

• Tags
• #Strong Group-Philippines
• #44th William Jones Cup
• #Qatar
• #Xinzhuang Gymnasium
• #DJ Fenner
• #Javi Gomez de Liano