Sheldon Marlon Andre Gahi of UV lays it up against Kevin Oleodo of USC in Monday’s Game 2 of the Cesafi men’s basketball finals at the Cebu Coliseum (CDN PHOTO/LITO TECSON).
UV eyes 11th Cesafi crown but wary of USC comeback
Game today:
Cebu Coliseum
5 p.m. — USC vs UV
The University of the Visayas (UV) Green Lancers will try to complete the long journey back up to the throne as they seek a sweep of the defending champions University of San Carlos (USC) Warriors in Game 3 of the best-of-five finals series in the 16th Cesafi men’s basketball competition today at the Cebu Coliseum.
Up 2–0 after a 69–54 shellacking of the Warriors in Game 2, the Green Lancers are eager to wrap things up and capture their 11th league title and their first since 2013. Should they sweep USC, it will also be their very first since 2005.
But head coach Gary Cortes emphatically said that the battle is far from being won in spite of UV’s dominance so far in this series.
“I told the boys in practice earlier that San Carlos will not give up that easily and that we should expect adjustments from them. Besides, we should be wary of the comeback trend these days. Golden State did it against Oklahoma City. Cleveland did it against Golden State, so anything can happen,” said Cortes, UV’s defensive sentinel during his playing days for the Green Lancers.
“The final buzzer hasn’t rung yet, and we won’t relax until we’ve been awarded the trophy,” Cortes added.
After losing twice in three games against USC earlier this season, UV has risen to the occasion and has stymied the Warriors, most notably their shooters, at every turn. Now, it’s up to USC head coach Rommel Rasmo to concoct a suitable game plan to keep their title defense alive.
“For sure, we will adjust defensively and offensively,” said Rasmo, the affable young mentor who is coming off a title conquest in the high school division as the head coach of the powerhouse Ateneo de Cebu Magis Eagles.
“I must admit that in Game 2, UV really outplayed us. It also didn’t help that we weren’t making our outside shots,” Rasmo said in reference to their putrid 1-of-14 shooting clip from beyond the arc. “I just hope that we could gain our shooting touch back so that we can also give the ball inside to Scotty.”