Jaguars take on Wildcats; UC jrs. target semis spot

CEBU, Philippines – The University of San Jose-Recoletos Jaguars will try to nail their first win in the second round of elimination when they take on the Cebu Institute of Technology-University Wildcats in the 15th Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation, Inc. men’s basketball tournament today at the Cebu Coliseum.

The Jaguars blasted the Wildcats, 102-71, during their previous meeting last August 11, but one could expect a totally different battle this time as both teams have somehow shown a relative improvement on all facets of their game.

They may be at the tail-end of the standings, but their confidence level of the Jaguars and the Wildcats and their being a cohesive force are evident as they journey through the crucial stage of the competition.

The Jaguars nearly pulled off an upset against the fancied University of the Visayas only to be spoiled by Alfred Codilla’s last-second triple in a nerve-tingling 77-79 loss to the Green Lancers six days ago.

On their end, the Wildcats dropped what is by far the biggest bombshell in the league this season when they upset the Lancers, 94-88, last August 30. In their next assignment, the CIT-U cagers put up one big fight against the undermanned defending champion Southwestern University Cobras, albeit in a losing cause this time.

That will surely add color and excitement to their 6:45 p.m.duel where the Jaguars hope to improve their 2-5 win-loss record and the Wildcats looking for their fourth win in nine starts.

The Jaguars have all the tools to come up with a repeat performance over the Wildcats. But that they can only achieve if the offensive guns of Kevin Villafranca, Ralph Dinolan, Jaybie Montilla, Mark Labares, Miguel Gastador, Nelvin Navarra, and Ricky Peromigan will work all through the match.

The Wildcats can’t be taken lightly as they are powered by a solid veteran cast in Joshua de la Cerna, Alan Dimco, Jeffrey Taghoy, Mark Kong and Wilkin Sanchez. They can also count on the likes of Jesse Aloro, John Lucena, Steven Bucao, and Jose Marlo Pono among others.

In the first game under the juniors division at 5:15 p.m., the twice-to-beat University of Cebu Junior Webmasters shoot for a semifinal berth against the sixth-ranked University of Southern Philippines Foundation Baby Panthers.

It would be a tall order though for the UC bantams as the Baby Panthers crushed them, 93-68, during their August 9 encounter. — EBV (FREEMAN)