Bandung, West Java. Rony Gunawan’s basket with 10.6 seconds left secured the Indonesian Basketball League Tournament trophy for Satria Muda Britama. Rony’s shot gave the four-time defending IBL champion a 61-58 victory against Pelita Jaya Esia in the final at C-Tra Arena in Bandung on Sunday. “I had to take that shot, we led by only a point before that and it went in,” Rony said after the game. “I’m really happy to win this, especially because we overcame fatigue after playing three consecutive matches in three days.” Hoisting the IBL Tournament trophy yet again capped a hectic weekend for Satria Muda. It started with a semifinal against defending IBL Tournament champion Garuda Flexi, which Satria Muda won 64-47. The team then traveled back to Britama Arena in Jakarta for an Asean Basketball League contest against the Singapore Slingers, which it won 67-58 on the back of standout performances from Indonesian players Faisal Achmad, Youbel Sondakh and Christian Robert Sitepu. Victory on Sunday allowed it to reclaim the trophy it lost last season, when Garuda beat Satria Muda 58-53 in the final. “It was a hard-fought victory as my players were all really tired because of that back and forth trip and Pelita played really well,” Satria Muda coach Fictor Roring said. Faisal led Satria Muda with 20 points, including six 3-pointers, and Amin Prihantono added 10 points. Erick Christopher led Pelita Jaya with 16 points, six rebounds and four assists. Pelita Jaya stayed close early, trailing just 27-22 at halftime. It made its move in the third quarter as Fictor rested his starting lineup, pulling ahead and taking a 44-43 lead into the fourth. Satria Muda fought back, though, and saw out the rest of the game to add to its trophy case. “Our players didn’t show good teamwork in crucial moments,” Pelita coach Rastafari Horongbala said. “I will make sure that kind of individual showing off won’t happen again.” Garuda, last year’s tournament winner and this year’s trophy game host, had to settle for third place after it defeated Aspac Jakarta 76-63 in the consolation game.
