MULTI-TITLED University of the Visayas (UV) Baby Lancers kicked off their campaign in the Emil’s Fresh Chicken Fiesta Cup Inter-Secondary basketball tournament with a hard-fought 85-80 victory over the University of Cebu (UC) Baby Webmasters at the Lipata-Linao Sports Complex in Minglanilla, Cebu, last Sunday, July 20, 2025.
Coach Ronald Bucao’s Baby Lancers pulled through in the final stretch to overcome coach Reggie Licanda’s Baby Webmasters.
Liyco Ventura hit a three-pointer and completed two free throws in the final 25 seconds, while Jose Ejurango sealed the win with a couple of charity shots.
The Baby Lancers led for three quarters before a 7-0 rally --spearheaded by Michael Raymund Saniel and Martylouisses Sotto -- put the Baby Webmasters ahead, 61-60, with 7:30 left in the fourth quarter.
Under the leadership of Jacob Cortes, UV regained the advantage, 79-74, after Ventura’s three-pointer.
The Baby Webmasters briefly took back the lead at 80-79 through the efforts of CJ Bulagsak and Allen Ybanez Doverte, but UV responded with a 6-0 run fueled by Ventura and Ejurango’s free throws to seal the thrilling victory.
Rhadz Simon Silawan led the Baby Lancers with 21 points, while Ejurango and Cortes scored 15 and 13 points, respectively. Ventura finished with nine points, all in the fourth quarter. For the Baby Webmasters, Saniel scored 21 points and Sotto added 19.
Earlier, the University of Southern Philippines Foundation (USPF) Baby Panthers dominated UC-Lapulapu/Mandaue (UCLM), 84-68.
From the start, the Baby Panthers surged ahead and extended their lead by halftime. UC-LM, coached by Calib Duwangon, launched several rallies but couldn’t sustain the momentum.
The combination of Luke Dy, Lawrence Selim, and Junsen Magbato proved to be a potent weapon against UCLM. Dy scored 19 points, Selim added 18, and Magbato contributed 12. For UCLM, only Noe Lingoste finished in double figures with 15 points. / JBM