The Bay Area Dragons have a young and talented backcourt in Kobey Lam and Glen Yang, but they hardly made an impact in Game 1.
The young Bay Area backcourt of Glen Yang, 26, and Kobey Lam, 22, played okay in Game 1. But okay isn’t cutting it in these Finals — certainly not against Playoff LA Tenorio and MVP mode Scottie Thompson.
Yang and Lam combined for 23 points, 3 rebounds, 10 assists, 1 block, and 1 steal, and they mostly protected the ball, coughing it up only 4 times between them. Thompson, though, largely matched those numbers, himself scoring 14 points, grabbing 9 rebounds, dishing off 6 assists, and recording 2 blocks and 1 steal. Tenorio was equally masterful, dropping a conference-high 22 points on top of 2 rebounds and 3 assists.
These numbers, however, tell just part of the story. That story throughout Game 1 was how impactful the Ginebra backcourt was, with Tinyente keeping the Gin Kings afloat in the first half with his timely scoring. The Hustle Man then took over in the third, scoring 8 of his 14 points and doing a little bit of everything else — 5 rebounds, 2 blocks, and 1 steal.
In contrast, Yang and Lam hardly made an impact. Neither could make a big play, be it a booming triple or a timely floater a la Tenorio or hustle plays similar to Thompson’s. Lam, in particular, seemed overwhelmed during the MVP’s third quarter tour de force, giving Bay Area practically nothing other than 2 fouls, 1 assist, and 2 misses.
Combined, Lam and Yang finished the second half with just 7 points — thoroughly outplayed, outhustled, and outsmarted by Ginebra’s championship-caliber backcourt.
Bay Area will need more out of its young backcourt — much more. The good news for these Dragons is that Lam and Yang can actually give more. They proved as much in the semis, matching the deep and ultra-talented San Miguel backcourt and mostly playing them to a draw.
They will need to step up starting in Game 2, or else this series will end early in favor of Ginebra.