NEWLY-crowned Senior Shield champions Seasonal came back to earth when they were beaten by title rivals Seapower 78-69 in a Hong Kong men's Division A1 match at the MacPherson Stadium last night.
Seasonal, who edged Suntex last Thursday to successfully retain their Shield championship, began their league title defence in haphazard style.
Looking a shadow of themselves from their earlier exploits, Seasonal seemed out of sorts as Seapower began in determined fashion.
Leading them to victory was Mark Bright, who netted 22 points, while stylish forward Bill Courtney contributed largely to the win with 17 points.
Although the match did not reach any great heights, the teams matched each other point-for-point in the early stages until the defending champions gradually gave way to Seapower's hard driving game.
Seapower slipped to a higher gear in the last 10 minutes of the match as Seasonal began to visibly tire.
