By Chia Han Keong

THE Singapore Slingers opened their Asean Basketball League (ABL) campaign with a 87-69 victory over the Brunei Barracudas at the Singapore Indoor Stadium yesterday.

A superb third-quarter performance turned what had been a tense encounter into a comfortable romp for the hosts.

American imports Michael Leblanc (20 points) and Kyle Jeffers (15 points) paced the Slingers, while reserve guard Wong Wei Long (14 points) also showed off his energy in the vital third quarter.

With seven Singapore players in their squad of 12, the Slingers got off to a quick start, as their brisk tempo caused plenty of problems to the Barracudas.

Guards Hong Wei Jian and Philippine import Al Vergara pressed their opponents into turnovers and led fast breaks for their teammates to score easy baskets for a 20-14 first-quarter lead.

However, the Barracudas - playing a steadier game - chipped away at the Slingers' lead, forcing the hosts into wild attempts with their robust defence. Nevertheless, a flurry of baskets scored late in the quarter meant the Slingers clung on to a 38-37 half-time lead.

Yet, as well as the Barracudas had played in the second quarter, they simply disappeared in the third - committing turnover after turnover as the Slingers reduced theirs.

With brisk ball movement and better shot selection, the Slingers carved their opponents open, and led by as much as 21 points in the third quarter before easing home.

Four other teams - the KL Dragons, Philippine Patriots, Thailand Tigers and Indonesia's Satria Muda BritAma - form the ABL, where teams will each play 15 games against one another, with the top four progressing to play-offs in February.

Each club has a budget of US$1 million (S$1.4 million) and an annual salary cap of US$400,000 for a squad of 12.

In last Saturday's inaugural ABL match, the Patriots beat Satria Muda 75-67 at the BritAma Arena in Jakarta in front of 3,000 fans.

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