UV, Ateneo de Cebu stake unbeaten records

Jasper Berezo of CIT-U breaks free from the defense of UV in last Thursday’s semifinal game at the Cebu Coliseum. (LITO TECSON)

Games today:
Cebu Coliseum
Juniors
4 p.m. – USPF vs CIT-U
5:30 p.m. – UV vs SHS-AdC

With Two wins already tucked in their pockets, something is bound to give between bitter rivals Sacred Heart School-Ateneo de Cebu (SHS-AdC) Magis Eagles and the University of the Visayas (UV) Baby Lancers as the two powerhouse squads continue on their race for the finals in today’s premier match-up in the semifinals of the Cesafi juniors basketball tournament at the Cebu Coliseum.

The Eagles and the Baby Lancers are tied for first place in the standings of the double round-robin Final Four with identical 2-0 (win-loss) records. But only one squad will come away unscathed today with the winner moving closer to booking a spot in the best-of-three finals series.

The top two finishers at the end of this round will advance to the championship games.

So far, the blue-and-white-clad boys of multi-titled head coach Rommel Rasmo have been unbeaten in 10 straight games this season, including a 74-71 victory over UV in their lone meeting in the elimination round.

In that game, the Eagles led by as many as 21 markers before the Baby Lancers made it a bit more interesting, 68-72, after a barrage of three pointers from forward Theo Flores.

MVP contenders Joshua Sinclair and Janjan Jaboneta are expected to reprise their roles from that game today. In that Aug. 18 game, the Fil-Australian Sinclair had 22 points and 12 rebounds while Jaboneta added 12 markers and 11 boards.

But UV will try to prove its worth this afternoon behind the play of superb guards Orlan Wamar and JC Escalona.

In the first game, the University of Southern Philippines-Foundation (USP-F) and the Cebu Institute of Technology-University (CIT-U) will be out to breathe new life into their finals campaigns when they face off against one another.  The two squads share similar 0-2 cards.