Panthers gun for third straight victory

CEBU, Philippines - The University of Southern Philippines Foundation (USPF) Panthers try to extend their winning streak to three games in a row for the first time under coach Raul Latonio, Sr. as they test the University of San Carlos (USC) Warriors in the lone collegiate match of the 11th Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation, Inc. (CESAFI) men's basketball tournament tonight at the at the Cebu Coliseum.

Games today

(Cebu Coliseum)

5:15 pm USC vs. USP-F (jrs.)

6:45 pm USPF vs. USC (srs.)

In the juniors division, the same schools will slug it out, with both the Baby Warriors and Baby Panthers seeking for their first win.The Panthers, donning the Rose Aquarius jersey, showed a lot of improvement in the off-season and even became the surprise package in the 5th CESAFI Partners' Cup where they defeated all rivals including the top three contenders namely UC (Gaisano Capital), UV (Lion-Tiger) and SWU (San Marino Corned Tuna).

Not only that, USPF was the lone team to survive the onslaught of the visiting University of the Philippines (UP) Fighting Maroons in overtime, while the rest were being easily demolished by the UAAP squad including the UC Webmasters who lost by more than 20 points.

Their offense is reliable and their defense is doing wonders. Again, the Panthers will pin their hopes on leading scorer Fritz Dajalos, outside gunner Joseph Sedurifa and veteran pointguard Randy Avila. These three holdovers are among the main weapons of coach Latonio.

The present Panthers' crew also know how to handle pressure at the endgame unlike in the past seasons where they would break under tense situations. They have the killer instinct and could make rallies in a blitz as what they've shown in their game against the Cobras.

Resiliency has been labelled to teams which are quick to come back instead of folding up. The Panthers now deserve to be called as such.

Earlier this afternoon, the Baby Panthers try to score their first win in two starts against the smaller Baby Warriors, who are still searching for answer to arrest a three-game skid. (FREEMAN)