THE University of the Visayas (UV) Baby Lancers escaped with a thrilling 71-62 victory over the Cebu Eastern College (CEC) Baby Dragons in the ongoing Emil’s Fiesta Cup Inter-Secondary Invitational at the Lipata-Linao Sports Complex on Saturday, July 25, 2026.
After a tightly contested battle through the first three quarters, the Baby Lancers, now under new head coach Raymon Mercader, capitalized on a string of Baby Dragons turnovers midway through the fourth quarter to pull away for the win.
Rodz Simon Silawan was named Player of the Game with 15 points, eight rebounds and two assists.
Lean Russel Bano also played an equally pivotal role with 19 points, five steals and four assists, while Pert Binagatan contributed a double-double of
In the day’s other game, the University of Cebu (UC)-Main Campus bounced back strongly from its loss to the USPF Baby Panthers on Thursday by routing the Benedicto College Baby Cheetahs, 79-50.
Towering 6-foot-7 center Jade Bialan powered the UC Baby Webmasters with 16 points and 14 rebounds, helping keep their semifinal hopes alive.
Angel Cayobit added an all-around performance of 12 points, seven assists and five rebounds, while John Terol chipped in 11 points.
To secure a semifinal berth, UC must defeat the defending champion Cebu Institute of Technology-University Junior Wildcats (2-0) on Monday, July 27. / JBM