Gems dazzle Rising Sun; Fresh Fighters roast Bakers
MANILA, Philippines—After pulling off a quarterfinal upset, Cebuana Lhuillier shocked erstwhile unbeaten Cagayan Valley, 89-85, Thursday to move within a win of ousting the top seed in the PBA D-League Aspirants Cup semifinals at Ynares Sports Arena.
The Gems, with all cylinders firing just two days after overcoming the twice-to-beat advantage of Jumbo Plastic in the quarterfinals, cashed in on a fiery start to deal the Rising Suns their first loss in 12 games.
Simon Enciso fired half of his 22 points in the fourth quarter as the Gems kept their composure against the rallying Rising Suns.
But No. 2 Hapee hardly had any problem in routing Cafe France, 74-58, in Game 1 of their own best-of-three semifinal series.
Garvo Lanete dropped eight of his 20 points in the second quarter, where the Fresh Fighters outscored the Bakers, 27-10, to erect a 39-26 halftime buffer.
The Gems zoomed to a 17-7 start and went on top by 26 points, 37-11, in an early burst anchored on Enciso, Allan Mangahas, Norbert Torres and Almond Vosotros.
“The most important thing was the character of the players, so credit to the players,” said Gems coach Boycie Zamar.
Mangahas finished with 17 points while Torres and Vosotros added 15 each as the Gems survived the Rising Suns’ 10-1 run in the last three minutes.
The Gems clamped down on Cagayan’s top scorers—Moala Tautuaa, who finished with a measly five points, and Abel Galliguez, who missed all his seven attempts from the field.
The Fresh Fighters overwhelmed a Bakers side that had a woeful shooting day, posting 5-of-34 from three-point range to finish with just a 26-percent shooting clip.
Ray Parks collected nine points, eight rebounds and five assists, while Chris Newsome also shot nine for the Fresh Fighters, who rebounded from a first loss to the Rising Suns at the end of the eliminations.
“It was a good challenge for us that we have to work harder,” said coach Ronnie Magsanoc, whose Fresh Fighters posted leads as big as 19 points, 52-33.
The scores:
First Game
HAPEE 74—Lanete 20, Parks 9, Newsome 9, Rosario 8, Elorde 6, Adeogun 6, Thompson 5, Dela Cruz 5, Amer 3, Long 3, Hayes 0.
CAFE FRANCE 58—Sedurifa 11, Ebondo 11, Abundo 9, Alolino 7, Ahanmisi 5, De Leon 3, Cortes 3, Galanza 2, Celso 2, Noble 2, Jeruta 0, Batino 0.
Quarters: 12-16, 39-26, 58-44, 74-58
Second Game
CEBUANA LHUILLIER 89—Enciso 22, Mangahas 17, Torres 15, Vosotros 15, Bautista 8, Ferrer 6, Guinto 3, Acibar 2, Zamar 1, Villahermosa 0, Lopez 0, Sarangay 0.
CAGAYAN VALLEY 85—Melano 21, Trollano 19, Austria 13, Celada 9, Mabulac 8 Dilay 5, Tautuaa 5, Tayongtong 3, Santos 1, Salamat 1, Olayon 0, Capacio 0, Flores 0, Galliguez 0.
Quarters: 29-10, 47-35, 73-64, 89-85
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