THE Sacred Heart School-Ateneo de Cebu Magis Eagles completed the final four cast in the Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation Inc. (Cesafi) high school basketball tournament with a 69-54 rout of the University of San Jose-Recoletos (USJ-R) Baby Jaguars at the Cebu Coliseum on Thursday, November 7, 2019.
It was a nip-and-tuck battle between the two powerhouse squads until the Magis Eagles asserted their might on both ends of the floor in a 12-0 run that bridged the third and fourth periods that gave them a huge 18-point lead, 59-41, after a floater by Raymark Narbasa.
Also starring in that sizzling stretch were LA Casinillo, Ariel Dinglasan and Raffy Celis who sank an improbable three-pointer from the left wing as the shot clock ran out to add fuel to Ateneo de Cebu’s game-breaking run.
Ateneo de Cebu improved to 7-2 (win-loss) with just one more game left on their schedule against the reigning high school champions, University of Cebu.
USJ-R, on the other hand, bid goodbye to its semifinal hopes with its fifth loss in nine games. The result was a disappointing one for the Baby Jaguars, which many pundits pegged to be a title contender after they won the pre-season championship.
Casinillo finished with 18 points, five rebounds and three steals to lead the Magis Eagles, while Dinglasan had 12 markers and seven boards. Narbasa ended up with 10 points and nine rebounds.
Kevin Guibao was USJ-R’s lone bright spot as he had 16 points, nine rebounds and four blocked shots.