Birthday boy delivers Suerte sinks game-winning three to lead UV past USC; USJ-R shocks UC
UV’s Rey Suerte pulls up for a three pointer over USC’s Sommy Managor in their Cesafi men’s basketball game at the Cebu Coliseum.
Former MVP Rey Suerte made it a birthday to remember as he scored the game-winning three-pointer with 0.4 of a second left to lift the University of the Visayas (UV) Green Lancers past the University of San Carlos (USC) Warriors, 81-78, in the 2018 Cesafi men’s basketball tournament.
The win, their eighth in 11 games, was especially important for the 12-time league champions as it kept their bid for one of the top two spots alive.
The top two finishers after the elimination round will head to the semifinal round, armed with a twice-to-beat advantage.
On the other hand, the loss left USC at 4-7 (win-loss) and placed them a game behind idle University of Southern Philippines Foundation, which hold a 5-6 record for fourth place and the last ticket to the Final Four.
The game was tied at 78-all after USC forward John Reel Saycon hit a three-pointer with 4.9 seconds to go.
Off a timeout, Suerte received the ball, shed his defender with a pump fake and rose for a triple from the top of the arc that hit nothing but the bottom of the net to put UV ahead for good, 81-78.
With no more timeouts, the Warriors were not able to get off a shot as time expired.
Suerte, who was celebrating his 24th birthday on Thursday, finished the game with 29 points, five rebounds, five assists, two steals and a blocked shot.
Sommy Managor paced USC with 24 points and 10 boards.
TWICE TO BEAT IN JEOPARDY
In the second game, the University of San Jose-Recoletos (USJ-R) Jaguars put a monkey wrench into the University of Cebu’s (UC) bid for a top two finish as they blew away the Webmasters, 74-57.
The win gave USJ-R a 7-3 (win-loss) record, half-a-game behind UV.
After winning their straight games, UC has lost two of their last three games to fall to 9-2 with one more game left on their schedule — a marquee showdown on Sunday against bitter rivals, UV.
The top two finishers after the elimination round will head to the Final Four, armed with a twice-to-beat advantage against seeds three and four.
Disclaimer: The comments uploaded on this site do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of management and owner of Cebudailynews. We reserve the right to exclude comments that we deem to be inconsistent with our editorial standards.
