M. Lhuillier downs Iloilo for third straight victory

The M. Lhuillier-Cebu City Jewelers hit the road on a winning note as they blasted the debuting Toyota-Iloilo Warriors, 86-72, their third straight in the Visayas Division of the ML Kwarta Padala Mindanao Visayas Basketball Association (MBVA) First Conference at the jampacked University of San Agustin gym in Iloilo City.

After failing to make an impact in their previous two outings, ex-pro Stephen Padilla came out of his shell to topscore with 15 points, while silent operator Alano Caputolan banged in 14 markers as M. Lhuillier firmed up its hold of the overall lead with a clean 3-0 slate.

The visiting Cebu Jewelers of coach Raul "Yayoy" Alcoseba employed a crippling full court-trap right from the start to baffle the Iloilo Warriors all throughout the 40-minute skirmish.

"It's our trapping defense that keyed our victory. I noticed that their pointguard is not-so effecient so we trapped them and eventually forced them into several turnovers," said Alcoseba, who is also the MVBA founder.

The Jewelers feasted on Iloilo's string of errors to pile up points quarter after quarter resulting into a 14-point rout in the tournament backed up by ML Kwarta Padala, Sulpicio Lines, Panasonic, Molten, Nature's Spring and Cokaliong Shipping Lines.

After racing to an early 18-10 lead, M. Lhuillier continued to pounce on the Warriors in the next two quarters to enjoy a lofty 15-point bulge at 68-53 cushiong heading into the final quarter.

It was an all-Jewelers show the rest of the way. Power-playing forward Enrico Llanto added 11 points for M. Lhuillier, while Jayford Rodriguez and Niño Ramirez combined for 17 points.

Eldrin Senieres posted a game-high 20 points for Iloilo, while Edgar Castro and Elben Leonida scored 13 and 12, respectively, but their efforts went to waste as the Warriors failed to deliver a winning start to their hometown fans.

Meanwhile, the winless Cagayan de Oro Rapids will try to keep their Mindanao Division semifinal hopes alive when they host Pacman-GenSan of boxing idol Manny Pacquiao today at 5:30 pm today at the Xavier University Gym.

The 0-4 Rapids are a full game behind idle Pryce Pharma-MisOr (2-4).

Pacman is on a two-game winning streak, thanks to power forward Jaypee Locsin who averaged 18.0 ppg in their last three games.