Caida five grabs PCBL lead; SLR up

Caida Tiles continued its winning ways in the Pilipinas Commercial Basketball League (PCBL) Founders Cup as it hammered out a 94-82 victory over Jumbo Plastic even as Sta. Lucia Realty survived another endgame collapse to outlast Supremo Lex at Filoil Flying V Arena recently.

The Tile Masters, with Billy Robles dictating plays, scored 19 points in transition compared to only four from the Giants.

Robles knocked in 19 points, including 11 in the fourth period, while Dexter Marquez added 14 for the Tile Masters.

Ford Ruaya also contributed 10 points for the Mike Buendia-mentored Caida squad, which grabbed the solo lead with a 2-0 record.

“Our early preparation is bearing fruit. We’ve been practicing for a long time,” said Buendia, one of the assistant coaches of Yeng Guiao in Rain or Shine in the PBA. “But we still have lapses, especially in turnovers. Rebounding is another aspect we need to improve on because we’re not a big team.”

True enough, Caida turned the ball over 20 times.

In the main match, Sta. Lucia squandered a 15-point lead in the third period, but held on to survive Supremo Lex, 77-71.

Burly center Wowie Esconio produced 19 points and nine rebounds, including a crucial three-point play down the stretch that helped stave off a late rally by Supremo Lex.

The Bonnie Garcia-mentored Realtors dropped their opening game to Racal Kama Motors after leading by 20 points.