CEBU CITY -- M. Lhuillier Kwarta Padala-Cebu City became the first team to advance to the crossover semifinals of the First Talk ˜N Text Mindanao Visayas Basketball Association (MVBA) Invitational Tournament at the New Cebu City Coliseum Monday evening.
The multi-titled Jewelers of Michel Lhuillier and Coach Raul "Yayoy" Alcoseba spoiled the debut of 24/7 Freight Logistics Promac under Coach Mike Reyes, 93-86, for a sweep of Group A of the first major provincial tournament sanctioned by the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (BAP-SBP) in cooperation with the Cebu City Sports Commission (CCSC).
Jimwell Torion essayed another stellar performance as he banged in a huge triple at the 1:15 mark of the fourth quarter to give M. Lhuillier an unassailable 91-85 advantage. After a Carlos Sayon free throw, Torion added one more field goal to set the final tally and insure the win with still 41 ticks to play.
M. Lhuillier controlled the first three quarters until a late surge by 24/7 Promac gave them the lead for the first and only time in the contest on a field goal by center Jan Malinao with 4:41 left in the final canto, 82-81.
However, the Jewelers' veteran smarts prevailed as Stephen Padilla banged in a triple and Alano Caputolan added two free throws to give them a four-point cushion, 86-82. Kane Abatayo clustered three unanswered points to threaten for the last time, 85-86. Padilla then converted to free throws to ease the pressure, setting the stage for Toriona’s late-game heroics.
Padilla led all scorers with a game-best 23 points followed by Torion with 17. Malinao paced 24/7 Promac with 14 points while Ryan Carlo Padayao scored all his 12 points in the second quarter.
In the nightcap, Richard Ian Saladaga defied a phalanx of defenders to score on a twisting drive with 2.8 seconds left in the game to lift Hotel Fortuna-Firefly of businessman Lorenzo Sy over Holcim Pryce Pharma-MisOr of Governor Oscar Moreno, 90-88. Saladaga then batted away a MisOr pass at the buzzer to break up their final scoring chance.
Trailing by five points and 3:31 to play, 83-88, Ramil Tagupa valiantly brought MisOr back into the game with the last four of his 15 points, 87-88. The Bong Abad-coached squad had several chances to grab the lead until Frank Nailon finally equalized the count at 88-88 with a free throw split at the 32-second mark.
Saladaga, who played the 2006 MVBA season with Cebu Landmaster, led Hotel Fortuna Firefly with 18 points followed by Marlon Kalaw with 16. Dennis Concha and Lowell Briones topped MisOr with 21 and 20 points respectively.
