DEFENDING champion Abante Minglanilla and Aksyon Agad Talisay City edged out their semifinal opponents to set up a much-anticipated rematch in the best-of-three finals of the 2025 Rhea Gullas Cup First District basketball tournament at the Talisay City Sports Complex on Sunday, Sept. 14.
Minglanilla survived a major scare from Sidlak Carcar City, pulling off a thrilling 106-101 double-overtime victory before passionate fans from both sides.
Minglanilla led most of the way and had an 11-point heading into the fourth quarter. But under the leadership of Christopher Dellica, Coach Anton Viloria’s Carcar squad launched a 15-8 rally to tie the game at 78-78, forcing the first overtime.
The battle remained intense in the extra periods, with both teams showcasing grit and skill.
Gevy Eredera and Kurt Denver Erediano played pivotal roles for Minglanilla, while Freitz Aeron Ledesma and Dharzy Bacon kept Carcar in the fight with 16 and 13 points, respectively.
With the score deadlocked again at 92-92, the game went into a second overtime. This time, Minglanilla pulled away, outscoring Carcar 14-9 in the final five minutes to seal the win.
Talisay City, on the other hand, took a different path to the finals, defeating Naga City, 77-72.
After a slow start, Talisay seized control, taking a 40-35 halftime lead and extending it to 60-47 by the third quarter.
Naga tried to mount a comeback in the final four minutes of the game, closing the gap and threatening Aksyon Agad, but ultimately fell short.
Jethro Necesario led Talisay with 24 points, supported by Arvinji Paras with 17 and Christian Mark Abatayo with 10. For Naga, Mark Andrey Candia scored 16 points and Nino Denver Waskin had 15.
With their respective wins, Talisay and Minglanilla will face each other once again in the finals. Last year, Minglanilla defeated Talisay 2-1 in the finals to claim the championship. / JBM