Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net
After all Hapee has gone through this conference, the Fresh Fighters are actually now just a win away from their second championship in the PBA D-League.
Rejuvenated by the return of its Gilas stalwarts, Hapee held on and took Game 1 of the Foundation Cup Finals with an 83-72 win over CafeFrance Thursday at Ynares Sports Arena.
Chris Newsome led the second half assault of the Fresh Fighters, pouring in 14 of his 18 points in the final two quarters while registering seven rebounds and five assists.
Ola Adeogun also added 12 markers and five rebounds despite not seeing action in the second half, while Troy Rosario and Baser Amer chimed in 11 points apiece.
Despite owning the 1-0 series edge, coach Ronnie Magsanoc said that winning the title won’t be an easy one, as evidenced by the Fresh Fighters’ grueling ascent to the Finals.
“The race is to get to two wins. We’re just one game ahead of them, but there’s still a lot of work to be done. We need to rest and take a look at what happened,” he said.
Jam Cortez led CafeFrance with 15 points, while Michael Miranda and Samboy de Leon both had 11 markers.
Eloy Poligrates finished with 10, but shot a paltry 3-of-20 from the field for the Bakers.
Luck must be smiling on Hapee’s way as there has never been a Game 3 in the D-League Finals.
The Fresh Fighters have a chance to close out the series on Monday, 3 p.m. at the same venue.
The Scores:
Hapee 83 – Newsome 18, Adeogun 12, Amer 11, Rosario 11, Thompson 10, Dela Cruz 9, Villahermosa 6, Romero 4, Mendoza 2, Elorde 0.
CafeFrance 72 – Cortez 15, De Leon 11, Miranda 11, Poligrates 10, Sedurifa 9, Ahanmisi 7, Ebondo 5, Abundo 2, Andrada 2, Jeruta 0, Batino 0.
Quarters: 23-22, 38-37, 60-56, 83-72.