CEBU, Philippines - The Powerade Tigers tripped the Meralco Bolts,122-109, to claim the second place honors in the Cebu City Mayor’s Cup Basketball Invitational last night at the Cebu Coliseum.
The Tigers ended the three-day tournament with a 2-1 slate and regardless of the outcome of the second match between the Alaska Aces and the M. Lhuillier Kwarta Padala-Cebu Niños which was still being played as of this writing, the Aces are already assured of clinching the championship by virtue of a superior record.
The Tigers was in full command of the match from the outset, closing the first half with an 11-point edge, 61-50. The result of the game was already evident when the Tigers mounted an imposing 19-point bulge, 95-76, on a buzzer-beating triple by Gary David that punctuated the third period.
Two bench-clearing incidents late in the game provided drama to a rather boring match dominated by the Tigers.
The first was at final 2:53 mark of the contest when Powerade’s Mark Macapagal was fouled hard by Meralco’s Solomon Mercado on the way to the hoop. Macapagal landed flat on the floor and immediately rushed to Mercado upon getting up but proverbial cooler heads quickly put the situation under control.
Twelve seconds later, Powerade playmaker Chico Lanete and his Meralco counterpart engaged in a heated confrontation that nearly triggered another hardcourt melee. But then again, pacifists succeeded in preventing the situation from blowing out of proportion.
The hardworking Shawn Anthony topped Powerade with 25 points, David had 23 even as four other Tigers cashed in double digits. (FREEMAN)