Bacolod Tay Tung High School (BTTHS) and Sacred Heart School Jesuit (SHSJ) of Cebu bagged the Visayas Small Basketeers Philippines (SBP) and Passerelle championships, respectively, of the Milo-sponsored Best Center SBP-Passerelle basketball tournament at the West Negros University Gym.
Tay Tung came from behind to nip Ateneo de Iloilo, 56-55, in the SBP finals while SHSJ scored a 72-66 win over Ateneo de Iloilo in the Passerelle championship game.
Tay Tung went to Kirrell Brahndon Montalbo who single-handedly slashed Ateneo’s lead in the fourth quarter. Go sank four straight free throws and added a lay-up to give Tay Tung a 54-52 lead with 1:02 left in the game. Down 54-56, Ateneo had the chance to tie the game and go for the winner when an unsportsmanlike foul was slapped against Tay Tung. Kins Jonas Go split his charities to cut down the lead to 55-56 with 5.5 seconds left.
Earning ball possession due to the unsportsmanlike foul, Ateneo failed to score in its final possession.
In the Passerelle championship, SHSJ squandered as many as 12 points but recovered in time.
to overcome Ateneo de Iloilo. Down 51-58 in the fourth period, Ateneo went on a 13-4 run to take a 64-62 lead with 2:19 left in the game. SHSJ then ran off six unanswered points behind Borgy de la Cruz who tied the game at 66-all and Jerry Jan Seno who scored four straight points from the baseline to give SHSJ a 70-66 lead with 54.6 seconds left. The Sacred Heart defense shut down Ateneo from then on to spoil Iloilo’s target to score a double Visayas SBP-Passerelle championship.
Tay Tung and Sacred Heard will represent the Visayas in the national finals of the tournament, which will be held in Iloilo on Nov. 22 and 23. Tay Tung will join face off against the other regional champions including defending national SBP champions Ateneo de Manila, International School for Better Beginnings of Lucena and Ateneo de Davao.
In the Passerelle division, Sacred Heart will go up against La Salle Greenhills, Don Bosco Pampanga and Sacred Heart of Jesus Montessori of Cagayan de Oro.