CEBU CITY, Philippines—- The two commercial basketball powerhouses in Cebu, ARQ Builders and Truck N Trail, faced off in the much-awaited championship showdown for the inaugural title of the Mandaue’s Pride Basketball Association (MPBA) Summer Cup after beating their respective foes in the conference finals last Sunday evening, May 28, 2023, at the Cebu Port Authority (CPA) gymnasium.
Truck N Trail eked out a grinding victory against J.A.M, 89-86, to rule the north conference of the league, while ARQ Builders overwhelmed Artera Builders, 98-83, to lord the south conference.
Both teams will face off in the MPBA finals game on June 3 at the same venue.
Truck N Trail’s Zaionyl Rosano exploded for a double-double game of 20 points, 11 rebounds, four assist, and one steal. EJ Conahap added 15 points and was one rebound shy from tallying a double-double outing.
Ajing Rosano added 14 points for Truck N Trail, while Albert Ardiente scored 10 points for the winning squad.
Truck N Trail endured six lead changes and two deadlocks in their hard-earned victory against J.A.M.
Both teams were equally matched on the painted area with Truck N Trail scoring 34 points, while J.A.M with 36 markers.
However, Truck N Trail banked on its fast break points and transition offense after earning 20 points over J.A.M’s four.
Their bench players also delivered 38 points, over J.A.M’s 26.
Meanwhile, ARQ Builders had an easy south conference finals against Artera Builders with four of its players scoring double digits.
Jestony Baclaan scored 18 points with four boards, one assists, and one block to lead ARQ Builders.
Tommy Ugsimar had 15 points and was two assists away from tallying a double-double game.
George Sumalinog and Jandele Flores each contributed 13 points for ARQ Builders.
Jeff Michael Gudes spoiled his 21-point outing for Artera Builders, while Adrian Padilla scored 14, Rey Gonsaga with 11, and Jared Espina with 10 points for the losing squad.
ARQ was leading throughout the game, and even built a commanding 25-point lead in the final period, 93-68, en-route to ruling the south conference.
ARQ made Artera Builders pay for each turnover they committed, converting 15 points from it, while the latter only had 4. They also dominated the paint with 64 points over Artera’s 48.
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