SAN REMIGIO invitational
The Ateneo de Cebu Magis Eagles rallied from a five-point deficit late in the fourth and authored a close 74-71 win over the Western Leyte Colleges (WLC) of Ormoc in the San Remigio Properties Invitational yesterday at the Magis Eagles Arena in Canduman, Mandaue City.
The four-time Cesafi juniors champions held a 64-57 lead midway through the fourth but suddenly got off track and Western Leyte took advantage to grab the upper hand, 70-65, as Billy Malinao and Carmelo Sano rained down threes, while Noel Mascarinas and Ramier Angelo made spectacular lay-ups.
However, the battle-hardened Magis Eagles refused to falter as JJ Yu, Justin Javelosa and Christian Manaytay, who shot in a putback, put them back ahead, 71-70, time down to 2:26.
Mascarinas tied the count at 71-all by splitting his free-throws but the Magis Eagles once again surged ahead, 74-71, thanks to a clutch corner three-pointer by Patrick Yu that beat the shot-clock buzzer, 1:40 remaining.
Western Leyte had a shot at tying the game in the dying seconds but Malinao’s three-point attempt at the final buzzer rimmed in and out.
Manaytay led the way for the Magis Eagles with 14 points and 11 rebounds while Patrick Yu missed out on a rare triple-double with 13 points, 10 boards and nine assists. JJ Yu was a sparkplug off the bench with 11 points, the same output as Velasco.
Malinao scorched the nets for 31 points, spiked by a whopping seven threes.
The Magis Eagles will next face their sister squad, the Ateneo de Manila University Blue Eaglets, today at 5 p.m.