# 2019 ABL finals

The 2019 ASEAN Basketball League (ABL) finals was the best-of-5 championship series of the 2018–19 ABL season and the conclusion of the season's playoffs. BTN CLS Knights Indonesia and Singapore Slingers competed for the 9th championship contested by the league. After a decider game 5, CLS Knights Indonesia eventually clinched the club's first franchise championship in its history, and the second ABL Championship that came from Indonesia. Maxie Esho was named as the Finals MVP.

## Background

| BTN CLS Knights Indonesia | BTN CLS Knights Indonesia | Singapore Slingers | Singapore Slingers |
| Finished 15–11 (.577) for 4th place | Regular season | Regular season | Finished 16–10 (.615) for 3rd place |
| Def. 5th-seeded Saigon Heat, 2–1 | Quarterfinals | Quarterfinals | Def. 6th-seeded Macau Black Bears, 2–1 |
| Def. 8th-seeded Mono Vampire, 2–1 | Semifinals | Semifinals | Def. 7th-seeded Eastern, 2–0 |

### Head-to-head matchups

Tied 2–2 in regular season series :
20 January 2019 7:00 p.m.
Box score
BTN CLS Knights Indonesia
89–74
Singapore Slingers
Scoring by quarter: 22–15, 17–13, 26–16, 24–30
Pts: Esho 21 Rebs: Esho, Watkins 11 Asts: Herring 5
Pts: Alexander, Fields 22 Rebs: Fields 13 Asts: Alexander 5
GOR Basket Kertajaya, Surabaya, Indonesia Referees: Reynante Hufana (PHI), Ho Ming Chan (HKG), Sheng-Hsuan Wei (TPE)
3 February 2019 4:00 p.m.
Box score
Singapore Slingers
95–76
BTN CLS Knights Indonesia
Scoring by quarter: 22–20, 30–12, 25–23, 18–21
Pts: Young 36 Rebs: Young 14 Asts: Alexander 12
Pts: Esho 20 Rebs: Esho 13 Asts: Herring 6
OCBC Arena, Singapore Attendance: 1200 Referees: Owe Shiong Chan (MAS), Yong Sern Tee (MAS), Reynante Hufana (PHI)
27 February 2019 4:00 p.m.
Box score
BTN CLS Knights Indonesia
68–71
Singapore Slingers
Scoring by quarter: 19–16, 18–17, 17–20, 14–18
Pts: Jawato 18 Rebs: Watkins 11 Asts: Herring 7
Pts: Fields 25 Rebs: Fields 18 Asts: Alexander 8
GOR Basket Kertajaya, Surabaya, Indonesia Referees: Ceciline Michael Vino (IND), Yong Sern Tee (MAS), Wei Chuen Chuo (MAS)
10 March 2019 4:00 p.m.
Box score
Singapore Slingers
95–99 (OT)
BTN CLS Knights Indonesia
Scoring by quarter: 19–23, 20–24, 25–27, 24–14, Overtime: 7–11
Pts: Young 41 Rebs: Alexander 11 Asts: Alexander 6
Pts: Herring 36 Rebs: Herring 11 Asts: Herring 7
OCBC Arena, Singapore Attendance: 1000 Referees: Michael Tolentino (PHI), Yong Sern Tee (MAS), Owe Shiong Chan (MAS) :
This is the first playoff and finals meeting between BTN CLS Knights Indonesia and Singapore Slingers.

## Series summary

| Game | Date | Venue | Home team | Result | Away team |
| Game 1 | Monday, 3 May | OCBC Arena | Singapore Slingers | 67-86 (0-1) | BTN CLS Knights Indonesia |
| Game 2 | Wednesday, 5 May | OCBC Arena | Singapore Slingers | 77-57 (1-1) | BTN CLS Knights Indonesia |
| Game 3 | Saturday, 8 May | GOR Basket Kertajaya | BTN CLS Knights Indonesia | 60-63 (1-2) | Singapore Slingers |
| Game 4 | Tuesday, 11 May | GOR Basket Kertajaya | BTN CLS Knights Indonesia | 87-74 (2-2) | Singapore Slingers |
| Game 5 | Saturday, 15 May | OCBC Arena | Singapore Slingers | 81-84 (2-3) | BTN CLS Knights Indonesia |

## Game summaries

    All times local; UTC+7 for Indonesia, and UTC+8 for Singapore.