Gutsy Madridejos keeps perfect run

IT WAS a perfect Saturday night for basketball fans in Madridejos, a municipality in Bantayan Island which is more than 150 kilometers away from Cebu City.

The Madridejos basketball team beat Tabogon, 102-90, in front of its home fans at the Madridejos Gym to gain the solo lead in the 4th District standings with a 3-0 (win-loss) record last March 23.

On the same night, Madridejos received a P5-million cash assistance from the Capitol to fund the construction of the gym’s bleachers, which was damaged when typhoon Yolanda hit the province in 2013.

Cebu Provincial Sports Commission (CPSC) executive director Atty. Ramil Abing told SunStar Cebu that in the third year of the province-wide grassroots Under-21 tournament, there have been improvements in the performance of the teams coming from far-flung areas.

And one of the improving teams is Madridejos, which was eliminated after the first round last year with a 2-3 (win-loss) card.

“We are very satisfied with the performance of the team in the past three games. Tabogon and Bogo City are strong teams in our district,” said coach Renato “Molong” Rosales in Cebuano.

Municipal Councilor and coach Owen Daruca said they conducted a selection to create the 12-man team out of 200 aspirants. He added that since the Governor’s Cup started, it has become the dream of every young basketball player to represent the town.

Madridejos did not disappoint the home fans who went out to watch the team play as the host dropped a 34-point outburst in the fourth quarter to put away the determined Tabogon.

The first three quarters were a nip-and-tuck affair as both teams exchanged leads.

Madridejos grabbed a double-digit edge for the first time in the middle of the payoff period, 88-76, after leading by only three points after the third quarter. The home team did not waver until the final buzzer.

Clint Eduard Niedo top scored for the winning team with 23 points, Bernie Felicidario added 18 and Alfonso Quijano Jr. chipped 17 points, mostly from beyond the arc in the first half.

Making it to the quarterfinals will glitter like gold for Madridejos and the team is closer to its goal as there are only three games left in the 4th District elimination round. The top two teams in every district advances to the quarters.

“We will practice harder and make sure to focus in every game. We can guarantee that our players will give their best every time. All of them are locals who grew up here,” said Daruca.

He said that it was a great night for basketball in their town with the team taking the win and the Municipality receiving funding to continue the basketball gym’s construction.

The team believes that they have a lot of work to do to be at par with the league’s top teams but they will take it one step at a time.

“We will be happy with a quarterfinals berth. The boys will get the chance to play the top teams in the other districts,” said Rosales.

Abing hopes that as the league progress, the sense of town and city pride will grow with the support of the community.

In the other games in the 4th District, San Remigio escaped Santa Fe, 81-77 and Bogo City defeated Tabuelan, 78-68, also at the Madridejos Municipal Gym.

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