Players and coaches celebrate after receiving their championship trophy from Cesafi commissioner Felix Tiukinhuy (third from left) (CDN PHOTO/LITO TECSON)
Magis Eagles dispatch Baby Webmasters to rule Cesafi juniors hoop for 3rd straight year
The “three-peat” is finally complete.
After looking like nothing of the team that once won 11 straight games, the Sacred Heart School-Ateneo de Cebu Magis Eagles finally played to their true potential and ran the University of Cebu Baby Webmasters to the ground, 88-53, in the sudden-death Game Three to win their third straight crown in the juniors division of the 15th Cesafi basketball tournament yesterday at the rocking Cebu Coliseum.
Pushed to the edge by an upstart UC squad, the Magis Eagles pushed back early and raced off to a 20-10 start after the opening 10 minutes of action behind the baskets of Travis Mantua, Eroll Pastor and Jed Colonia who combined for 18 in that strong surge.
UC tried to stay in the game and were within nine, 20-29, after a triple by Froilan Mangubat but that proved to be their last hurrah as the blue-and-white juggernaut flipped the switch on and raised their game to another level. A 13-2 run capped by a Colonia triple and a buzzer-beating bucket by Wayne Bersaluna gave Ateneo de Cebu a 42-24 lead at halftime.
Then, behind a stifling defense anchored by the spindly arms of Alex Visser that stopped UC’s every attempt at the rim, the Magis Eagles rattled off 13 unanswered points, sparked by a triple by the court leadership of Mantua and the inside dominance of Visser and Bersaluna. A floater by Pastor that came off a steal off an inbound pegged the lead at 31, 55-24, 5:37 left in the third.
From that point onwards, what many expected to be an intense competition turned out to be a coronation for the Magis Eagles as the lead went as high as 41, 86-45, after a triple by John Chen, 2:11 to go in the match, much to the roar of the sea of blue and white that packed the venue.
Colonia, who was eventually named as the juniors Most Valuable Player and claimed a spot in the elite Mythical Five, scored 20 points, grabbed eight rebounds, issued three assists and had two steals. Visser, the surprise packaged of the match, had a double-double of 18 points and 10 rebounds; Pastor, the Magis Eagles’ Game Two hero, added 13 points and 12 rebounds while Mantua finished with 12 markers, eight dimes, four rebounds and two steals.
Afterwards, a joyful Rommel Rasmo, Ateneo de Cebu’s multi-titled head coach, expressed his satisfaction with how his wards handled the winner-take-all match.
“The boys really played their A-game. The result is far more than what I expected, to be honest. After watching the tape of the first two games, I just pleaded with the boys to be patient with our offense and pass the ball two to three times before taking a shot. Fortunately, they followed the advice,” shared Rasmo.
Joining Colonia in the Mythical Five were his teammates, Pastor and Mantua. Mangubat, who scored 18 yesterday, also made the team. Completing the squad was the University of the Visayas’ star Jancork Cabahug.
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