TEAM Alam Na’s Yellow dribblers on Tuesday night rallied from 15-point third quarter deficit to beat Team Black Dokie via overtime, 117-103 in the opener of their best-of-3 final showdown for the Green CdeO Eagles President Cup 2018 at Brgy. Patag covered court here.
With Loloy Gelogo, Ayok Pablero, Rex Armojallas, Jay Buot and Wesley Daculiat blending well on both ends of the floor, Team Black Dokie seemed to celebrate the night with plentiful buckets of cold drinks.
But the man known as `Batista’ in the local Eagles community spoiled it all with lots of dirty works to spark Team Alam Na’s fourth quarter comeback that gradually erased Team Black Dokie’s double digits lead.
With `the bull-strong Charlie Butron collecting 12 points in the fourth frame, Kuya Gov’s main man Macmac Labares came alive to also deliver 20 of his 35 points in the pivotal period to break the hearts of Gelogo and company.
“Grabe akong paningkamot sa ilalom pero ang uban alam na,” later said Gelogo, whose do-it-all performance had transformed Team Alam Na’s camp into a cemeterial silence midway of the third quarter.
The wards of Anjun Gomez and Yogi Hembrador actually reigned in the first quarter with Naknak del Castillo raining in treys for a quick 17-point bubble of his own to go along with Labares and R-Jay Aquino’s combined 18.
They sustained the momentum until Team Dokie’s big men began to impose their mighty presence from underneath the goal.
“Ni-take charge lang pud ko sa depensa kay dagko kaayo silang LoyGel’s ug Rex unya naa pa gyod si Jay (Buot),” Butron told SunStar Cagayan de Oro.
In the battle for third place, Team Green Airron’s fighting five earlier sent shiver down the spines of the heavily-favored Red Aspirants young enough to be called their sons.
In fact, with the smallest guy on the floor leading the charge, the Anton Pabillore-skippered Green Airron—which missed the services of Boning Biongcog, Jan Babiera, Loloy Casiño and Michael Daigdigan—took a 13-point lead, 51-38 at the half.
But youth prevailed over the veterans in the final half, 113-100 when the Ballpals MVP tandem of the 20-something Shian Galanida and Mart Mutya conspired for the Aspirants’ uprising.
“Nag trapping defense `mi kay inat na ang labaw sa first half. Naa si Anton unya dili kakumpyansaan ilang Stev Panaz mao gitodo na namo ang pwersa sa mga batan-on,” said the Aspirants’ playing coach Dodong Caballero.
Galanida and Mutya, the 2016 and 2017 MVPs of Ballpals club, paced the Aspirants with 28 and 26 points each.
The ragtag Green Airron cagers, who barely made it to the big 4 round, got 24 points from SunStar editor Lynde Salgados as Macapayag, Quieta and Pabillore added 20, 19 and 16 markers apiece.
The scores:
For third
Red Aspirants 113—Galanida 28, Mutya 26, Aquino 18, Barba 6, Galorport 6, Dela Cruz 4, Caballero 2.
Green Airron 100—Salgados 24, Macapayag 20, Quieta 19, Pabillore 16, Lungay 9, Baba 3.
Final Game One
Yellow Alam Na 117—Labares 35, Del Castillo 27, Neri 18, Butron 16,
Aquino R. 9, Jacutin 5, Abella 3, Gomez 0, Yogi 0, Lumacang 0, Mabalot 0, Bacarrisas 0.
Black Dokie 103—Gelogo 18, Pablero 17, Paporo 15, Armojallas 12, Daculiat 11, Buot 10, Manales 10, Noble 4, Sala 3, Yu 0, Fabre 0, Uyangurin 0, Pimentel 0.