CEBU, Philippines – The Asian College of Technology (ACT) Cyber Knights of coach Tata Merced pulled off a stunning 63-60 upset over the star-studded Chazyl Mae squad in the 1st M. Lhuillier Kwarta Padala Cup Basketball Tournament over the weekend at the Tabunok Sports Complex in Talisay City.
The Cyber Knights kept their offense going from the onset to take an early 19-14 lead. They again outgunned Chazyl Mae of coach Mark Tallo in the second canto to close the first half with a 12-point advantage, 38-36.
Behind the hot hands of commercial veterans Michael Luga and Milfred Sampelo, Chazyl Mae retaliated with a 16-8 rally to pull within four points, 42-46, but the Cyber Knights proved to be a tough nut to crack at crunchtime to hang on to a shaky four-point victory.
The ACT Cyber Knights, thus, jumped to solo second place in the overall standings with a 3-1 win-loss record, while dropping Chazyl Mae to third with a 3-2 slate.
In the other game, the San Remigio Beach Club (SRBC) won by default over the 24/7 Convenience Store. Organized by M. Lhuillier through its marketing director Michael Roma, the tournament offers a total P100,000 in cash prize, with the champion getting the biggest chunk of P50,000. The second will take home P30,000, while the third and fourth will pocket P15,000 and P5,000, respectively.
The scores
ACT (63) — Pontemayor 17, Cadiz 11, Nuñez 9, Reyes 9, Batiancila 6, Doy 6, Montes 3, Valencia 2
Chazyl Mae (60) — Luga 17, Sampelo 12, Toring 10, Caputolan 9, Resilla 9, Llaguno 2, Torion 1
Quarterscores:19-14, 38-26, 46-42, 63-60 —EBV (THE FREEMAN)