What Happened

The Taoyuan Pauian Pilots picked up their third EASL win on Sunday night, defeating the Macau Black Bears 104-86 in remarkable comeback fashion after trailing by as many as 26 points. The rally set a new record for the largest comeback in EASL history.

Macau opened the night on fire, scoring 40 points in the first quarter and carrying a 65–45 lead into halftime. Local forward Lao Chon Pong knocked down four three-pointers in the opening half, while Damian Chong Qui reached the 200-point career milestone on his way to a team-high 25 points.

The second half told a different story. Macau managed just 21 total points across the third and fourth quarters — fewer than Taoyuan scored in the third period alone, when the Pilots erupted for 29 points to begin their surge. Despite Macau hitting nine 3’s in the first half (the same total as Taoyuan had for the entire game), the Pilots’ advantages in playmaking and on the glass proved decisive. Taoyuan finished with 28 assists and a 48–35 rebounding edge to fuel the comeback.

Alec Brown led the Pilots with 27 points, while Lu Chun-Hsiang added 26. Center Amdy Dieng delivered 13 points and a game-high 14 rebounds, and the bench provided a major lift behind Owen Chen’s 12 points, giving Taoyuan four players in double figures.

The game also featured several individual milestones. Taoyuan’s Brown reached 200 career EASL points and William Artino surpassed the 100-rebound mark. For Macau, Chong Qui officially joined the 200-point club, while 7-foot-6 center Sam Deguara reached 100 career rebounds as well.

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What It Means 

Taoyuan now improves to 3-1 on the season and stays atop the Group B standings, while the Macau Black Bears fall to 0-3 and remain at the bottom of the group. This is the second straight season in which the Pilots have reached three wins, with their franchise EASL single-season record standing at four.

Macau, which debuted in EASL in 2024-25 and finished 3-3, will now need to win out to match that mark.

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Player of The Game: Lu Chun-Hsiang 

Lu Chun-Hsiang earned another EASL Player of the Game honor after a standout performance of 26 points, six rebounds and four assists, leading the Taoyuan Pauian Pilots to victory.

Even when the Pilots looked down and out in the first half, Lu helped keep them within striking distance before turning it up another level after the break. He logged 33 minutes and, despite a tough night from beyond the arc, shot 61.5 percent on two-pointers with eight makes, repeatedly getting to the rim in both transition and half-court sets.

After leading all players in total points scored during the 2024-25 EASL season, Lu continues to excel and appears on track to push the Pilots back toward the postseason – and potentially challenge that personal scoring mark once again.

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Super Statistic: 26  

The Pilots came back from 26 points down. You read that right. Twenty-six.

With 5:56 left in the first half, the Macau Black Bears led 51–25. By the final buzzer, Taoyuan had flipped it completely and won 104–86.

Taoyuan’s Amdy Dieng led the charge on the boards, while Owen Chen played a key role in the second half by adding much-needed offensive punch. Defensive stop after defensive stop kept Macau in check, and the Pilots kept piling on the pressure at the other end, especially center Alec Brown, who finished with 27 points and consistently took advantage of the stretches when his 7-foot-6 matchup, Samuel Deguara, was off the floor.

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Next Up  

The Taoyuan Pauian Pilots are done for the remainder of 2025 but will be back in action as soon as the new year begins, opening 2026 with a rematch against the Macau Black Bears in Fujian, China, on January 4.

For the Macau Black Bears, the road is even tougher. Before their first game of 2026, they travel to Okinawa, Japan, to face the Ryukyu Golden Kings on December 17. They head into that matchup on the brink of elimination, needing a win to avoid falling to 0–4 and potentially being knocked out of postseason contention by the midway point of the regular season.