Punch-drunk Beermen eye stability

San Miguel Beermen coach Leo Austria is disappointed with their start to the new ASEAN Basketball League (ABL) season.

The Beermen have been unable to string good results together and currently have a win-loss record of 3-3 heading into Sunday's game with the Jobstreet.com Singapore Slingers.

The Slingers (4-3) moved up to second in the ABL standings with a notable victory at the Saigon Heat on Friday while the Beermen sit fourth - a far cry from what was expected of the Filipinos at the start of the 2013 season.

"Of course we're disappointed because everybody thought we would dominate this tournament," Austria told FOX Sports.

"But as far as my knowledge goes with the ABL, every team is competitive and they are on par with our talent."

"And if you've noticed we are not up against only Indonesians or Malaysians [for example]; we're going up against teams with two imports and three Asian imports, that's why every game is hard for us to win unless we work hard."

No matter what the form book says or how the standings stack up, the Philippines are the powerhouses of basketball in the South East Asian region and as such the Beermen will still be considered favourites to lift the ABL title in June.

As for Sunday's game in Singapore against the Slingers, Austria is certainly not taking the home team lightly - especially given Neo Beng Siang's side submitted the Heat to defeat twice in the space of a week.

"It's a very dangerous team," he said.

"I watched their last game and they played very well and they are playing as a team and it looks like they've been together for a long time."

"You can see their improvement [since the pre-season] especially in their defence and they run a lot; they love to run."

He added: "They are playing like they have nothing to lose and everything to gain."

The Beermen will be without centre Brian Williams for the clash because of a knee injury the import suffered in last week's defeat to the Westports Malaysia Dragons.

Austria has drafted 6"11' former Southwest Baptist University basketball standout Matt Rogers into the team as a temporary replacement. He has been handed a two week deal.

Rogers played in the 2011-2012 season of the National Basketball Association (NBA) Development League for the Texas Legends where he averaged 7.1 points and 4.4 rebounds. Austria is expecting the player to help fill the gap left by Williams' spell on the sidelines, although he appreciates that they are not the same type of player.

"There's a lot of difference," Austria said.

"Williams is a banger, but Rogers can run. And he loves to take three point shots, but I have told him not to take a lot of them unless he is open because what I need from him is to dominate the shaded area because at 6"11' he is very quick for his size."

Rogers recently played in the Liga Espanola de Baloncesto (LEB) Gold League for Leyma Natura Coruna.

Source: Fox Sport