THE Sacred Heart School–Ateneo de Cebu (SHS-AdC) Magis Eagles showed the form of a defending four-peat champion as they overpowered the Cebu Eastern College (CEC) Dragons, 83–59, to secure the second spot in the Cesafi high school division on Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2025, at the Cebu Coliseum.
The win gave the Magis Eagles a twice-to-beat advantage in the Final Four. The University of Cebu (UC) Lapu-Lapu/Mandaue Baby Webmasters, who are set to face Don Bosco on Friday, Dec. 5, have already clinched the No. 1 seed.
The loss pushed CEC into a tight spot after two straight defeats. Now at 7–3, the Dragons’ hopes of advancing depend on the results of the remaining games of University of the Visayas (UV), UC-Main and Cebu Institute of Technology-University (CIT-U).
As of presstime Wednesday, Dec. 3, CIT-U was still playing against San Carlos School of Cebu (SCSC), while UV and UC meet Thursday, Dec. 4. A triple tie is possible, but CEC would lose out on quotient: CIT-U beat UC by 12, CEC beat CIT-U by six and UC beat CEC by eight.
If UV defeats UC, CEC is likely to take the fourth seed, with CIT-U third — provided the Wildcats also beat SCSC.
The Magis Eagles leaned on Lian Kent Basa and Henry Kristoffer Suico. Basa had 20 points, seven rebounds, five assists and five steals, while Suico added 19 and four boards.
SHS-AdC started fast with a 19–5 opening quarter and stretched the lead to 46–25 at halftime. It grew to 74–45 after a Basa three with 6:42 left.
“We encouraged the players to bring their A-game, especially since we’ve been inconsistent in our previous games,” Magis Eagles coach Rommel Rasmo said. “That was our best game in 10 outings. Hopefully we can carry this momentum into the semis.”
A semifinal clash with CIT-U is likely. CIT-U stunned the Magis Eagles, 61–56, on Nov. 21 in one of the season’s biggest upsets.
In the college division, the UC Webmasters formally clinched the top seed after beating the University of San Jose-Recoletos (USJ-R) Jaguars, 79–61. UC closed the eliminations at 12–2, while USJ-R slipped to 5–7.
Jepherson Nonol led UC with 17 points and four assists. Maverick Angelo Eligoyo added 11, including an alley-oop slam in the last 1:52 of the game. John Cark Angelo also finished with 11.
For USJ-R, El John Lacaya and Jan Vince Oringo scored 11 apiece, while Samuel Melicor Jr. had 10.