The University of San Jose-Recoletos (USJ-R) Jaguars made use of their veteran smarts to shake off a rusty start and rout the University of Southern Philippines Foundation (USPF) Panthers, 78-67, on Sunday in the men’s basketball tournament of the Cesafi at the Cebu Coliseum.

With a roster comprised of eight seniors who are in their final year of eligibility, pundits consider this season to be the Jaguars' best and perhaps, last chance at winning the title.

At the forefront of the come-from-behind win were shock troopers Marvin Duran and Abulaiz Suliman, while old reliables Lyndon Gudez, Luther Justiniani and Jabe Delfino provided the usual firepower.

However, they showed little urgency early on as they fell behind by as much as eight points, 8-16, in the first period.

But that was all that the Jaguars needed to awaken from their stupor as they quickly retaliated with a game-deciding 21-0 run that pushed USJ-R from a 19-24 deficit to a formidable 37-24 advantage.

Delfino punctuated the searing rally with a buzzer-beater from half court to erect a 42-30 lead at halftime.

The second half offered no solace for the Panthers as the Jaguars poured it on, building the lead to more than 20 points at several occasions before USPF strung up several baskets down the stretch to bring down the deficit to a respectable level.

Thirteen players scored for the Jaguars led by Gudez, who had 13 points and five assists. Justiniani filled up the stat sheet with eight markers, nine rebounds and seven dimes while point guard Armand Ponce, likewise, had a stellar showing, with six points and nine assists.

In the juniors division, defending champions University of the Visayas (UV) Baby Lancers affirmed their defense of the title as they crushed the USJ-R Baby Jaguars, 75-43.

Former Letran Squire Arvie Cabanero had an impressive debut with 17 markers while Aldwin Felisario added 15 points. In the other game, the Cebu Institute of Technology Wildkittens also debuted with a huge win as they dominated the University of San Carlos Baby Warriors, 85-66. /Correspondent Jonas Panerio