MEDELLIN and Bantayan are the first teams to clinch tickets to the quarterfinal round in the north division of the Cebu Governor’s Cup Inter-Cities/Municipalities Basketball tournament.
Medellin finished as the top team in the north division bracket 4 after streaking past Bantayan, 82-76, in their much-anticipated matchup at the Medellin Municipal Gym as both teams had yet to drop a game in the eliminations.
Medellin, however, emerged as the better team after keeping its slate clean and ending the elimination with an immaculate 5-0 win-loss record while Bantayan dropped to the second spot with a 4-0 card following its loss to the former. Despite the loss, Bantayan will still join Medellin in the north division quarterfinal round which will start late this month.
Meanwhile, the kings of the north, Consolacion Sarok Weavers, showed who’s in charge in the north division by thrashing the hyped-up Mandaue City, 81-74, last Friday at the Cordova Sports Complex.
Defending champion Consolacion logged its second victory by inflicting Mandaue with its first loss in the north bracket one division. After putting up a commanding lead in the first period, 23-13, the Weavers further stretched their lead to 46-32 to wrap up the first half with a 14-point cushion. Mandaue’s offense was buffered by Consolacion’s shooting spree that resulted to the 14-point lead at the end of the first half.
Consolacion engaged in a scoring duel in the opening quarter with Emmanuel Villamor, Patrick Montano, Marco Booker Panta and Leobert Andrew Casinillo combining for 18 of the Weavers’ 23 points while Hansel James Camacho and Archie Buscay kept Mandaue in the game as they combined for 11 of the team’s 19 points in the first.
Villamor led Consolacion with his game high 19 points with Montano adding 14 and Casinillo tallying 12 points. Topscoring for Mandaue was Aljen Mendez with 15 points while Camacho, Jonher Espina and Nino Matthew Paras contributed 10 points each.
Danao, for its part, temporarily gained leadership in the north division bracket one by defeating Compostela, 89-86. Compostela actually had a good start with Rodnney Montero and Merjun Nino Quirol leading the charge to give the team a 28-23 lead. But, Danao slowly gained momentum after two quarters and managed to keep their heads afloat.
Argie Capul led Danao with 22 points, Janny Montes added 18 and Rusty Aguilar contributed 13 points for Danao’s second win in as many games while Quirol scored a game high 29 points for Compostela with Montero chipping in 27 points.
San Remigio (2-3), on the other hand, won via forfeiture over the winless Sta. Fe Seafarers (0-5) in the north bracket 4 while the game between Cordova and Carmen was moved to another date due to some technical defects in the north bracket 1.
In the south division one battle, defending champion Minglanilla Archangels grabbed their second straight win by defeating another south division powerhouse, San Fernando Spartans, 72-68, at the Talisay City Sports and Cultural Complex. Minglanilla kept a slim lead in the first two quarters before its top guns, Justin Marc Nebril and Steve Nash Enriquez took over the game.
After a tight first half, Nebril scored seven and Enriquez added six to give Minglanilla more elbow room at 54-47 going into the final period. Franzel Dave Basalo and John Paul Saro ignited an end game rally for San Fernando but the Archangels were ready with Nebril and Enriquez keeping Minglanilla from falling apart.
Nebril topscored with 20 points with Enriquez adding 15 and Lyle Eredera finishing with 10 points for Minglanilla. Basalo led San Fernando with 19 points with Sarol chipping 17 points.
Host team Talisay AquaStars, on the other hand, routed Naga City Electrifiers, 93-65, to keep the lead in the south bracket 1 with an immaculate 3-0 slate.
Argao (2-1) handed Sibonga (3-1) its first loss following a 75-69 win to keep its hopes alive in the south bracket 2 as host team Boljoon (2-2) kept Dalaguete AgriSaurs (0-4) from scoring its first win, 75-69, at the Boljoon Municipal gym.