Bakers lean on Ebondo to end Tile Masters’ run

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Rod Ebondo truly was a force to reckon with as he carried Cafe France to a 78-72 victory over Racal in the 2016 PBA D-League Foundation Cup Tuesday at Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig.

The Congolese big man dominated the paint with 22 points and 15 rebounds as the Bakers improved to a 5-1 record.

“The boys played good defense. Racal is a very good offensive team, but maganda ang nilaro ng mga bata and they cannot stop Ebondo,” said coach Egay Macaraya, as Cafe France snapped Racal’s three-game winning run.

The Bakers also choked the Tile Masters on the defensive end, limiting them to just 72 points, way off from their average of 99.8 points per game.

Mon Abundo added 16 markers and four boards in the win.

Carl Bryan Cruz chipped in 13 points before getting ejected after being called for a flagrant foul penalty two with 5:41 left in the third quarter for elbowing Dexter Maiquez.

Cafe France seemed to have pulled away from Racal late, as Aaron Jeruta gave his side a 75-65 lead with 1:41 left.

But Racal kept on coming back, as Chris Javier trimmed the lead to just three, 75-72 with 55.0 ticks remaining.

However, Mike Parala was a thorn on the side of his former team, giving the Bakers a 77-72 lead with 18.3 seconds left from an off-the-glass jumper.

Jonathan Grey topped Racal with 12 points, two rebounds, and two assists, while Philip Paniamogan got 11 markers in the team’s second defeat in six games.

The scores:

CAFE FRANCE 78 – Ebondo 22, Abundo 16, Cruz 13, Jeruta 5, Manlangit 5, Opiso 4, Parala 4, Zamar 4, Arim 3, Villahermosa 2, Casino 0.

RACAL 72 – Grey 12, Paniamogan 11, Javier 10, Maiquez 9, Terso 9, Celiz 5, Banal 4, Gabawan 4, Ortuoste 3, Robles 3, Ruaya 2, Corpuz 0, Neypes 0.

Quarters: 20-15, 38-31, 58-56, 78-72