Strong Group won the third quarter, 26-2, to flip the script on Chinese Taipei Blue to open the 2025 William Jones Cup.
Strong Group-Philippines leaned on a third-quarter explosion powered by Andre Roberson and Rhenz Abando to rally past Chinese Taipei Blue, 67-56, and kick off their William Jones Cup title defense on a winning note Sunday night at the Xinzhuang Gymnasium.
Shaking off a nightmare start where they made just one field goal in the opening quarter, the defending champions found their groove after halftime, unleashing a stunning 26-2 blitz that flipped a 28-35 deficit into a 54-37 advantage.
Anchoring the rally was Roberson, the former Oklahoma City Thunder standout, who ignited a searing 21-0 run with his relentless hustle on both ends.
Roberson’s and-one bucket at the 5:19 mark gave Strong Group its first taste of the lead, 37-35, and set the tone for a momentum-shifting stretch.
Roberson followed up with a pair of baskets, while Abando thrilled the crowd with consecutive fastbreak dunks. By the time Lin Tinqian halted the drought for Chinese Taipei with a lone free throw late in the third, Strong Group had firmly seized control.
“This is what veterans are supposed to do,” said head coach Charles Tiu.
“We had a rough start, yes, but the guys didn’t panic. They responded like professionals. Still, we can’t afford to relax moving forward.”
Chinese Taipei was held without a single field goal for nearly nine minutes as DJ Fenner and Dave Ildefonso joined the scoring party to close out a dominant quarter that silenced the home crowd.
Despite easing off the gas in the fourth, Strong Group maintained composure. Chinese Taipei trimmed the lead to single digits late in the game, but Abando calmly drilled a dagger three-pointer with 45.6 seconds left to settle the outcome.
Roberson delivered a commanding performance in the absence of Kiefer Ravena—who missed the game due to his participation in a Jordan Brand event in Athens—finishing with 17 points, 19 rebounds, and five steals.
“He was incredible,” Tiu said of Roberson.
“His energy really lifted the whole team in that third quarter. We were flying around, rotating on defense, just doing everything right. That’s the kind of effort we need every single game.”
Abando added 11 points, three assists, two rebounds, two steals, and two blocks, while Ian Miller contributed 16 points despite a cold 5-of-17 clip from the field.
Chen Yingjun was the lone bright spot for Chinese Taipei with 14 points and five rebounds.
The Philippine-based squad will try to build on the momentum when it returns to action against Japan Developmental Team on Monday at 5:00 p.m., still at the Xinzhuang Gymnasium.