The Cebu Landmasters are just a breath away from the winning the coveted crown in Division A of the AVENIR Sacred Heart Ateneo Alumni Basketball Athletic Association (SHAABAA) Cup basketball tournament after they beat back the defending champions Goldberry Iloilo Hotel, 71-68, in Game 1 of the best-of-three finals series last Sunday at the Magis Eagles Arena in Canduman, Mandaue City. Playing much cohesion and teamwork, the wards of head coach Mike Reyes put Goldberry on their heels early as they established a 43-28 bulge at halftime and continued to lead 61-47, after 30 minutes of intense action. The proud title-holders though, did not out with a whimper as they tried to rally in the fourth behind a 21-10 run before running out of time to give the Landmasters the crucial victory and a 1-0 lead in the race for the championship. Kyle Valmoria paced the winning side with 15 markers while former PBA D-Leaguer Moncrief Rogado tallied 13. Big man Borgy dela Cruz added 12 while Daryl Tan chipped in 10 points. With the win, the Landmasters are now just a victory away from hoisting the crown they last won in 2012, which ironically, came at the expense of the very same squad they are battling now. Robert Gilo carried the fight for Goldberry with 19 points while Justin Huang added 17. Former pro Joel Co contributed 11 while Jeremy Huang finished with a mere 10. In the battle for third place, the Insular Square Titans defeated Gaisano Capital, 58-55. In the Division B finals, the Cinderella story of Chick@Phil 89 continued after they bested the RDAK Transporters, 54-44. The fourth-seeded Chick@Phil leaned on a fast start and stayed the course all throughout the game to register the victory and come within a win away from capturing the title. Chad Go led the way for the victors with 16 points while Theogene Lim and Melvin Tan ably supported him with 11 and 10 points, respectively. Meanwhile, third place honors in Division B went to Belo Men 98 after they trounced Echo Appliance, 52-44. Valiant Ngo led all scorers with 18 points.
Posted on: Mon, 29 Sep 2014 04:27:36 +0000
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