CAVITE — Newly-crowned Thailand Basketball League champions Phuket Waves are here.

The Waves made their presence felt by defeating Shawarma Shack Pilipinas, 101-80, for their first win in the 2023 Asiabasket Dasmariñas Championship at the Dasmariñas Arena.

Five players, led by import Michael Williams and Denzel Wong, scored in double figures for the Waves,

Williams, the leading scorer in the recent 10th Zheng Chenggong Cup International Invitational men’s basketball championship held in Nanan, China last month, topscored with 23 points on 9-of-15 shooting, along with eight rebounds and three blocks in 29 minutes of action.

Wong had a near-triple double with 18 points, nine rebounds, and eight assists to help the Waves snap a two-game losing streak.

Raymond Edward Miller also barely missed a triple-double as he finished with 16 points, a game-high 19 rebounds, and five assists.

Marc Lexter Poole added 13 points while former PBA player James Martinez chipped in 11 points,11 assists, and eight rebounds in Phuket’s victory.

“Masaya kami ngayon dahil nakuha na namin yung first win, This win is really important since we need this one for the playoffs, said Martinez, whose team is supported by Tine Perez, Kyl Collins and Ric Labrague Jr of Winzir and Sprinto shades

“Gaya dati, this is total team effort dahil nag-step up yung ibang players nami, nag-step up. Denzel (Wong) at Marc (Poole) played well, along with Mike and Ray,” added Martinez.

“Nag stick kami talaga sa depensa . Talagan gpinagbutihan ng mga players para manalo,’ said coach Mark Jason Santiago

Domark Matillano and James Darwin Castro led the losing effort of Shawarma Shack with 17 and 16 points, respectively.

The scores:

Phuket Waves (101) – Williams 23, Wong 18, Miller 16, Poole 13, Martinez 11, Lacastesantos 6, Gayosa 4, De Leon 2, Escosio 2, Casajeros 2, Alattica 2, Tuquib 2, Rifarial 0, Boac 0, Roy 0
Shawarma Shack Pilipinas (80) – Matillano 17, Castro 16, Obuyes 13, Acibar 12, Akpuru 10, Ibanez 4, Guevara 3, Menguez 2, Alba 1, Gabawan 1, Camacho 1, Montilla 0, Alano 0, Ikeh 0.
Quarterscores: 30-23, 54-39, 82-52, 101-80.