THE PAJO National High School came away with the Division 2 crown in the Lapu-Lapu National Basketball Training Center (NBTC) after they bested the Babag National High School, 78-64, in their championship match last Sunday at the Hoopsdome in Lapu-Lapu City.
The win earned the Pajo cagers a spot in the NBTC Regionals, where it will be joined by Mandaue champions PAREF-Springdale Titans and a qualifier from Bohol.
The regional competition, which dangles a spot in the nationals, will commence on February 18 and 19 at the Hoopsdome.
Godwin Apura led Pajo in scoring with 15 points while Justin Munez added 14. Aloysius Odias contributed 13 even as Zachlean Quilantang and Franz Saladaga, who snagged Most Outstanding Player honors, finished with 12 apiece.
Pajo held a 35-31 lead but extended it to 10 behind a six-point cluster led by Apura. It entered the fourth canto up by 11, 55-44, and proceeded to blow its opponent out of the water with one fastbreak after another from Munez, Quilantang and Apura, which opened up a 69-52 lead, with less than five minutes remaining.