Frederick Elombi of UC powers himself down low against the defense of Kenn Patjes Oguis of USC at the Cebu Coliseum.
(CDN PHOTO/LITO TECSON)
THE UNIVERSITY of San Carlos (USC) Warriors earned a fourth straight win with a thrilling 67-62 overtime win over the University of Cebu (UC) Webmasters in the Cesafi men’s basketball tournament at the Cebu Coliseum.
Lucky Ecarma and Kent Cabañog had 13 points each to lead the unbeaten Warriors’ charge while Victor Rabat added 10.
Rookie forward John Reel Saycon hit the biggest shot in his Cesafi career as he banked in a fallaway jumper as the fourth period buzzer expired to tie the game up at 58-all and send the game into overtime.
The Webmasters surged ahead in the extra session, 62-58, after consecutive makes from Jhan Jabello but USC grabbed the upper hand, 63-62, after a triple by Ecarma, and later, a deuce by Julius Cadavis with 1:10 to go.
A turnover and a missed triple by Justine Dacalos then doomed UC as Rabat and Saycon hit four straight free throws to put the game away.
UC dropped to 1-2, laying to waste the 17-point, 15-rebound, three-steal, two-block explosion by Cameroonian forward Frederick Elombi.
Baby Lancers 61, Magis Eagles 58
In high school action, the University of the Visayas (UV) Baby Lancers got back at their bitter rivals, the Sacred Heart School-Ateneo de Cebu (SHS-AdC) Magis Eagles, with a hard-earned victory.
Crafty guard Beirn Laurente paced UV with 14 points, four rebounds and four steals, and made the biggest shot for the Baby Lancers – an uncontested layup with 1:16 remaining – that pushed their lead to five, 61-56, after they nearly blew an 18-point third period lead.
JJ Rosete added 10 points, four boards, three assists and three steals for UV, which gained a tie for the lead in the standings, with the University of San Jose-Recoletos, at 3-0 (win-loss) .
Christian Manaytay had 14 points, 10 rebounds and four blocked shots for Ateneo de Cebu, which did not do itself any favors by missing 17 of their 31 attempts from the free-throw line.
In the other high school match, the USJ-R Baby Jaguars kept the University of Southern Philippines Foundation Baby Panthers winless with an 84-64 rout.