What Happened 

The Taoyuan Pauian Pilots made a statement in their opening game of the EASL Finals, pulling away from the Seoul SK Knights with a dominant second half to win 89-69 and advance to the semifinals. Taoyuan led by just seven at the end of the first quarter before steadily pulling away, outscoring Seoul SK in every period to build a lead that reached as high as 26 points.

Treveon Graham was the standout performer for the Pilots, finishing with 19 points on an efficient 7-of-12 shooting, while Alec Brown added 16 points and was a force on both ends. Lu Chun-Hsiang chipped in 12 points as Taoyuan shot 47% from the field and dominated in the paint, outscoring Seoul SK 40-28 in that category. The bench also made a significant contribution, with Taoyuan's reserves combining for 31 points to Seoul SK's 21.

For the Knights, Arvin Tolentino led the way with 18 points while Jameel Warney was held to 15 on a difficult shooting night, going 8-of-20 from the field. Darryl Monroe battled hard for 10 rebounds, but Seoul SK could never find the run they needed to claw back into the game, spending the entire contest without a single second in the lead. Taoyuan now advances to face Alvark Tokoy in the EASL semifinals.

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What It Means 

Taoyuan Pauian Pilots advance to the EASL Semifinals, where they will face No. 1 overall seed Alvark Tokyo on March 20 at 20:00 at Studio City Macau. The winner moves on to the EASL Championship Game.

Seoul SK, meanwhile, is eliminated. The Knights finish the 2025-26 season as Group A's No. 2 overall seed but could not replicate the run that took them to the championship game in 2023-24, falling short of the Final Four in their return to the EASL postseason.

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Player of the Game: Treveon Graham 

Treveon Graham was named Player of the Game after finishing with 19 points on 7-of-12 shooting, three-of-four from three, and a perfect 3-of-4 from the free throw line, adding five rebounds and two assists in 26 minutes. 

It was a timely performance from a player who has missed significant time through injury this season, and a reminder of why he finished last season as the second-highest points scorer in the EASL 2024-25 (153). 

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Super Statistic: 0:00  

Taoyuan controlled this game from the opening tip and never let go. The Pilots outscored Seoul SK 40-28 in the paint, held a 31-21 edge in bench points, and led for all 40 minutes — Seoul SK did not hold the lead for a single second of the entire game.

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Next Up 

Taoyuan will face Alvark Tokyo in the EASL Semifinals on Friday, March 20 at 20:00. The last time the Pilots met a B.LEAGUE side in the semifinals, they got the better of Ryukyu Golden Kings to reach the championship game.

Seoul SK bow out and return to domestic action, with the Knights next facing the Sono Skygunners in the KBL on Wednesday, March 25.