Baby Warriors, Dragons go 2-0 in CESAFI caging

CEBU, Philippines - The University of San Carlos Baby Warriors and the Cebu Eastern College Dragons easily breezed past separate foes for a rousing 2-0 starts in the juniors division of the 15th Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation, Inc. men's basketball tournament yesterday at the Cebu Coliseum.

Joshua Laurente sparkled with 20 points laced with three rebounds and two assists to power the Baby Warriors to a 76-67 triumph over the University of Cebu Baby Webmasters, while the Dragons unleashed a fierce third-quarter attack, then shut down Don Bosco Technology Center's offense in the final period to crush the Greywolves, 60-42.

Neon Aleikhem Chavez nailed 11 markers on top of four assists and three steals, while Jan Joshe Mangaron finished with 10 points and passed out eight assists for the Baby Warriors, who were in complete control after sprinting to a 41-24 advantage at halftime.

The Baby Warriors saw their largest lead at 21 points, 68-47, at the final 8:48 mark of the contest. The Baby Webmasters closed within just nine points, 65-74, off an 18-8 blitz but couldn't complete a huge comeback with only 56 seconds left to play.

Froilan Mangubat had 14 points and 10 rebounds, while John Bryl Cuyos and Jason Florence Abejo each scored 12 but their efforts went for naught as the Baby Webmasters stumbled to their first loss of the season.

The Dragons, on the other hand, bucked off a lackadaisical start and used a scorching offensive in the final half to come up with their best start since winning a historic championship five years ago.

Vince Ryan Tecson charted 16 points followed by Glent Anfernee Roa with 15 for the Dragons, whose slow start compounded by a paltry five-point output in the second canto resulted into an 11-point deficit at the intermission, 15-26.

The Dragons roared to life in the third where they staged a sizzling 22-3 run, then handcuffed the Greywolves to only three points while hitting 23 to come up with an 18-point romp.

In the other juniors play, the University of San Jose-Recoletos Baby Jaguars barged into the win column at the expense of the University of the Visayas Baby Lancers, 65-43.

Joshua Renz Ortiz finished with 15 points and John Kirck Gonzaga added a dozen points for the Baby Jaguars, who detonated a devastating 24-6 bomb in the third frame to easily erase a six-point halftime deficit and eventually blow away the Baby Lancers. (FREEMAN)