The Zamboanga Valientes suffer a third straight loss and are officially out of the race to move on in the 34th Dubai International Basketball Championship.
The woes continued for the Zamboanga Valientes as they fell at the hands of Sagesse, 90-65, in their third game of the 34th Dubai International Basketball Championship at the Shabab Al Ahli Club in Dubai on Tuesday.
Falling to 0-3, the Valientes are officially out of contention to move on to the knockout rounds in the Dubai tiff.
Unlike their first two games, Zamboanga fell off the wagon early as the Valientes were limited to just eight points in the first quarter while their foes scored 26 on them, making it an 18-point lead from the get-go.
It was a wire-to-wire win for Sagesse, who leaned on former PBA import Shabazz Muhammad who finished with 32 points, eight rebounds, and two assists.
The Sagesse led by as many as 28 points in the ball game.
Adonis Thomas and Prince Caperal paced Zamboanga in the losing effort with 18 markers each.
The Valientes will need to shake off their loss quickly, though, as they will play their final game against the Tunisia National Team on Wednesday.
This will be the Valientes’ chance to finish on a high note and avoid a winless campaign in Dubai.
Currently, Tunisia are second in Group B with a 2-1 slate. The other Filipino team, SGA, are undefeated in Group A with a 3-0 record.
Strong Group also plays its last game of the group stage on Wednesday as they face the Amman United Club.