RP cagebelles rip S’poreans; Malaysia wins

MANILA—THE PERLAS ng Pilipinas national squad showed an arsenal too awesome for Singapore to post a runaway 101-34 win yesterday at the start of the 7th Southeast Asian Basketball Association Women’s Championship at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium. 

The RP cagebelles lorded it over in the paint, shot confidently from long range and were remarkably active on the defensive. 
Melissa Jacob nailed three three-pointers, Sylvia Valencia added two triples and Merenciana Arayi completed several fastbreak plays as the Filipinos built a commanding 44-12 halftime spread. 
The Nationals also plucked down 15 offensive rebounds in the first 20 minutes, courtesy of Cassy Tioseco and Ana Tolentino, while forcing the Singaporeans to 21 turnovers. 
By the end of the third period, the Filipinos were beyond recall, 73-29, giving RP coach Haydee Ong enough freedom to maximize her bench and explore several combinations. 
In the curtain-raiser, Woon Yuen Teo came through with 19 points on top of eight boards, four assists and three steals as Malaysia registered an 84-60 win over Indonesia. 
The Malaysians, champions of the tournament’s first five stagings before Thailand stole the crown in 2007, grabbed an early lead, 21-10, and never looked back. 
The Malaysia-Indonesia opener was followed by a brief opening ceremony led by Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas president Manny V. Pangilinan and chair Oscar Moreno. 
Also present during the opening rites were SBP executive director Noli Eala, Smart Sports chief Patrick Gregorio, Philippine Sports Commissioners Chito Loyzaga and Akiko Thomson, SBP officials Bernie Atienza and Jay Adalem. 
“We’ve been trying to develop our killer instinct and we’re not going to let up from start to finish,” said Ong. 
Perlas ng Pilipinas faces Malaysia tomorrow in a match that could determine its worth for the title. 
The scores: 
PHILIPPINES 101—Tolentino 19, Arayi 14, Tioseco 10, Mercado 10, Jacob 9, Valencia 8, Gloriani 7, Pineda 7, Grajales 6, Adriano 5, Borja 4, Jose 2. 
SINGAPORE 34—Tan 16, Ang 8, Koh 4, Lim 3, Sunarko 2, Sim 1, Chee 0, Tok 0, Tan E. 0, Tang 0. 
Quarters: 19-7, 44-12, 73-29, 101-34 

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TAGS: Basketball, Southeast Asian Basketball Association Women’s Championship