Cebuano Eluid Poligrates of Cafe France tries to put up a shot against Cris Newsome of Hapee Fresh.(INQUIRER)
The Hapee Fresh Fighters are halfway through to a second straight championship after they outscrapped the Café France Bakers, 83-72, Game 1 of the best-of-three finals series in the PBA D-League Foundation Cup yesterday at the Ynares Arena in Pasig City.
Bolstered by the return of three of their main stays – Troy Rosario, Baser Amer and Scottie Thompson – from national team duties, Hapee pulled away late to claim the victory and stand a win away from adding another trophy to their collection.
Former Ateneo wingman Chris Newsome led Hapee with 18 points, seven rebounds and five assists while Nigerian big man Ola Adeogun had 12 points and five boards in limited minutes.
Still, the victory was a hard-earned one for the wards of Hapee head coach Ronnie Magsanoc as Café France pulled to within four, 62-66, after two free-throws by Cebuano guard Eliud Poligrates with 4:32 to go.
But Hapee countered with six straight points off a mid-range jumper by Amer, a transition basket by Newsome and an undergoal stab by Thompson to bring their lead to double-figures, 72-62, with 3:05 remaining.
The Bakers pushed one last time and came within four, 72-76, after a triple by Samboy de Leon but Amer sealed the win for Hapee with a three-pointer of his own with under a minute left in the match.
Jam Cortes paced Café France with 15 points.