GREAT ESCAPE: Late-game rally leads UC to Game 1 victory over UV in Cesafi juniors finals
James Incio of UC pierces the UV defense in Game 1 of the juniors finals at the Cebu Coliseum.
CDN PHOTO/LITO TECSON
The University of Cebu (UC) Baby Webmasters completed the greatest of escapes, coming back from seven points down with two minutes remaining to defeat the defending champions University of the Visayas (UV) Baby Lancers, 88-84, in Game 1 of the best-of-three finals series in the 2018 Cesafi high school basketball tournament on Wednesday night at the Cebu Coliseum.
Down two, 82-84, with 30 seconds remaining and UV inbounding from the sideline, Marc Delgado came up with the biggest defensive play of the game, diving on the floor to steal the inbound pass and passed it off to an open Jasper Pacana, who didn’t hesitate to shoot the go-ahead three, 85-84, from the top of the arc with 25 seconds left.
UC then held its ground on UV’s next offensive, denying star forward Joshua Yerro and then, found a streaking James Basallo for a fast break layup for an 87-84 lead with 8.8 seconds to go.
The Baby Lancers sued for time and got the ball to point guard Gabriel Cometa, whose potential game-tying triple fell short. UC forward Ice Blanco then ensured the stunning victory with a free-throw.
“My players may be small but they are all hungry to win,” said UC’s emotional head coach Joever Samonte after the game. “I had faith in Pacana, I had faith in Delgado and they delivered when it mattered the most.”
Pacana finished with 17 points and three rebounds while Jerick Ranido added 13. Blanco, the son of Cebuano basketball great, Dondon Hontiveros, finished with 11 points and seven boards.
The loss spoiled the gargantuan triple-double effort of Yerro who piled up 15 points, a whopping 30 rebounds and 10 assists. Cometa added 22 points as UV is now forced into a must-win situation in Game 2 on Friday to keep its title defense alive.
Third place honors went the way of the University of San Jose-Recoletos after they beat the University of Southern Philippines Foundation, 72-64.
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