THE ST. Louis-Cebu College (SL-CC) Cardinals inched closer to booking a slot in the Division 2 national finals after they authored two emphatic wins in the National Basketball Training Center (NBTC) Visayas Regionals yesterday at the Lapu-Lapu City Sports Complex.
The Cardinals avenged their loss to PAREF-Springdale in the NBTC Mandaue finals with a resounding 64–54 victory over the Titans.
The Cardinals were previously beaten by the Titans, 70–76, in their hotly contested match a few weeks ago at the packed Minglanilla Sports Complex.
But yesterday, the Cardinals turned the tables on the Titans behind the stellar play of versatile forward Matthew Paras, who tallied 22 points.
SL-CC got off to fast start in the first three periods, where it established a 51–39 lead and didn’t look back.
Sean Quitevis led the way for the Titans with 17 points while Giles Benedicto tallied 14.
The Cardinals did not miss a beat in their afternoon game as they routed the Pajo National High School, 82–57.
Much like their morning performance, SL-CC raced off to a 23–14 lead after the first and kept their foot on the gas until the very end.
Ken Nuñez paced the Cardinals with 16 while Paras managed 13.
SL-CC will gun for a sweep of its games today when it battles the visiting Holy Spirit School of Tagbilaran (HSST) in the first of two games that will be held at the Hoopsdome.
The other match will feature the Titans going up against Pajo.
Meanwhile, the Titans bounced back with a 77–69 win over HSST.
Quitevis was dominant in the win as he piled up 26 points to help the Titans even up their record at 1-1 (win-loss).
HSST likewise got their first win of the tournament with a 76–57 win over Pajo. Karl Nacuna led the balanced attack with 12 markers.