Magis Eagles complete second three-peat in CESAFI hoopla

CEBU, Philippines —  The Sacred Heart School-Ateneo de Cebu (SHS-AdC) Magis Eagles lost a 19-point lead in the first half but dropped a 10-0 bomb in the final four-minute mark of the contest to finish off the hard-fighting University of the Visayas (UV) Baby Lancers,  58-55, in the deciding match of their best-of-three finals and keep their throne as juniors division champions in the Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation, Inc. (CESAFI) Season 23 Men’s Basketball Tournament on Friday, December 15, at the Cebu Coliseum.

Jared Bahay sizzled with 14 points, Froiland Maglasang added 11 markers, while Alden Cainglet, RJ Dacalos, and Nikolas Yu each scored eight as the Magis Eagles snatched their third consecutive crown in four years. They reigned supreme in 2019 as well as in the league’s comeback season last year to secure their second three-peat. They first achieved a rare grandslam feat way back in 2014 until 2016.

Overall, the Magis Eagles clinched their seventh crown since their historic campaign in 2012, all under the guidance of coach Rommel Rasmo, to equal UV’s record as the winningest high school teams in CESAFI’s 23-year history.

“I’m speechless,” said coach Rasmo. “I think this  victory is very special because we faced a lot of challenges. Talagang pinaghirapan namin ‘to.”

“On the other hand, I have to salute UV and their coaching staff. They bring out the best in us and to be honest, they really outcoached us,” Rasmo added. “But we just played the Magis Eagles way and thankfully the boys executed what was expected of them.”

UV’s Ismael Culdora broke the ice of the match but Froiland Maglasang and Nikolas Yu fired back-to-back triples before Jelomar Rota and Jared Bahay joined the scoring spree to streer the Magis Eagles to a huge 24-8 lead after the first 10 minutes of play.

The Magis Eagles even made it a 19-point bubble, 27-8, on a 3-pointer by Alden Cainglet to start the second quarter.

With a sense of urgency, the Baby Lancers retaliated with 11 straight points, fueling a decisive 22-4 counter-attack that pulled the boys in green jersey within just a hairline at the break, 30-31.

A seemingly recharged Magis Eagles nailed seven straight points while holding UV scoreless in the first six minutes of the third perod to regain an eight-point edge, 38-30.

But the Baby Lancers responded with a 9

15-5 blitz to seize the upper hand, 45-43, on Kenneth Cole’s two consecutive treys with just two minutes gone by in the fourth quarter.

A see-saw battle ensued with the Baby Lancers going up by three, 49-46, but RJ Dacalos, Bahay, Rota, and Yu rattled 10 straight points to push the Magis Eagles back on top by  seven, 56-49, with only 1:21 left to play.

Maglasang’s breakaway layup in the last 41 seconds sealed the deal for the Magis Eagles.