Webmasters survive Jaguars' scare

CEBU, Philippines - Pesky guard Francis Luigi Bercede hit a crucial three-pointer and then sank two pressure-packed charities in the final 16.7 seconds of the contest to rally defending champion University of Cebu (UC) Webmasters past the University of San Jose-Recoletos (USJ-R) Jaguars, 68-67, in another thriller of the 11th Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation, Inc. (CESAFI) basketball season at the Cebu Coliseum.

Games today

(Cebu Coliseum)

1 pm SHS-AdC vs. CIT-U (Jrs.)

2:30 pm CEC vs. USC (Jrs.)

4 pm USJR vs. UC (Jrs.)

5:30 pm USC vs. SWU (Srs.)

Bercede earlier split his charities as they came within 60-61 but made up from that miss by hitting a go-ahead triple, 63-61, with 1:47 left in the game. Later, his two free throws padded UC's lead to four points, 68-64, but his heroics were almost eclipsed by Renato Abing, whose back-to-back triples would have been the key to USJ-R's upset win.

 Abing's first trey in the final 59 seconds pushed the Jaguars within one, 64-65, and another desperate heave gave them a little ray of hope as they came close anew, 67-68, down to just 8.3 seconds. But UC kept the final possession and wisely used the clock to seal the deal.

 Prior to that, Quinton Brian Heruela stepped at the sideline while receiving a very narrow inbound pass, forcing a turnover in favor of the Jaguars with four seconds to work with.

 Miguel Tabaloc would have been the hero for the Jaguars had his final attempt was not deflected by 6-foot-9 center June Mar Fajardo.

 The Webmasters, who also survived a scare against the University of San Carlos (USC) Warriors last Sunday, 68-64, nearly paid dearly for sitting out Fajardo the entire first period to provide their second stringers more playing time. That experiment went to the Jaguars' advantage as the latter led for more than three full quarters.

Abulaiz Suliman had a brilliant third quarter to keep the Jaguars' heads above the waters as they managed to lead by a baker's dozen, 38-25.They also led at the half, 34-25 but the Webmasters unloaded a 10-0 run to tie the game at 40-all late in the third.

 Bercede had a silent 20 points for the Webmasters, his highest output ever in UC uniform, while Fajardo also finished with 20 points.

 Mohammad had four treys of his 16 points, but the other shooters in the likes of Gerald Ampoon, John Michael Auditor and John Raphael Aranas failed to contribute any point. (FREEMAN)