The Cebu City Sharks-Casino Ethyl Alcohol continued their climb in the South division as they won their fourth in-a-row after surviving the Pasig Pirates, 56-53, in the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League Datu Cup at the People Center in Bataan.
The Sharks scored a single point in the last five minutes of the game but still managed to hack out the victory and boost their win-loss record to 5-8.
It was a tough win for the Sharks, which led by 11, 48-37, at the start of the fourth canto but saw that lead trimmed down to just two, 55-53, after a layup by Martin Gozum with 1:20 to go.
The Pirates actually had a shot at tying the game after veteran forward Jerwin Gaco fished a foul on Sharks big man Rhaffy Octobre with eight seconds left.
However, Gaco missed both, which eventually led to split charities from Cebu City guard Harold Cincoflores for a 56-53 Sharks lead with four ticks remaining.
The Pirates’ misfortunes continued as they turned the ball over on their next possession but Sharks missed a chance at sealing the win after Cincoflores missed two free throws.
The Pirates rebounded the ball but weren’t able to get a clean shot off as time expired.
Octobre led the Sharks with a double-double performance of 10 points and 12 rebounds.
Gayford Rodriguez has proven to be a great addition to the team, scoring 10 points and pulling down nine boards.
The team’s leading scorer, Patrick Jan Cabahug, played just 16 minutes and ended up scoreless.
Gaco led the Pirates, which fell to 2-10, with 16 points and 13 rebounds.
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