SWU Cobras, USC Warriors fight for pivotal 2-1 series lead in Cesafi hoop seniors finals

Game today:

Cebu Coliseum
Game 3, series tied, 1-1
6:30 p.m. – SWU vs USC

Southwestern University head coach Yayoy Alcoseba (right) believes that today’s Game 3 can decide the outcome of the Cesafi men’s best-of-five championship series. (CDN PHOTO/ LITO TECSON)

After a subpar, spiritless Game Two performance, Southwestern University (SWU) Cobras head coach Raul “Yayoy” Alcoseba reminded his players of what was at stake in this stage of the tournament: the chance to etch their names in Cebu’s colorful basketball collegiate history.

And with the best-of-five series now reduced to a mere best-of-three starting with Game Three at 6:30 tonight, Alcoseba hopes that the message was well received by his team.

“There was no urgency. There was no life from the players. It was like they were there physically but neither mentally or emotionally in the game. They played like this was just a regular season game.

This is for the championship!” said Alcoseba of his team’s woeful start that saw them fall behind 5-17 to the University of San Carlos (USC)  Warriors and end up playing catch up the rest of the way before eventually going down, 46-53, and have the title series all tied up at 1-1.

It was a topsy-turvy performance for the Cobras who had trouble on both ends of the floor. For one, they tallied their lowest point total all season, a notorious feat helped by the zero-point output of the league’s reigning MVP, Mark Jayven Tallo. However, Alcoseba wasn’t all that alarmed by the lack of production from his prized guard in Game Two.

“I mean what can you do? Nothing was going in. He had an off night. He will bounce back,” said the defiant Alcoseba, who steered  SWU to its first and only title in the Cesafi in 2012.

The Cobras also had a hard time defending USC’s Shooster Olago and the Warriors’ plethora of guards.

“I felt like the player’s minds weren’t in the game. It was like our defensive strategy was to watch them shoot and hope that the ball doesn’t go in,” added Alcoseba, who vowed that adjustments have been readily made and that his team was ready to do battle in Game Three.

On the other side, in spite of the rousing win, USC head coach Junthy Valenzuela maintained that they were not out of the woods just yet and said that the gameplan remains the same: defend at all costs and keep SWU’s lethal quartet of Jasper Parker, Jovanie Luz, Landry Sanjo and Tallo from playing their usual games.