Misamis Oriental routs Gen. Santos, ties Liga series

Misamis Oriental bounced back from a Game One defeat to beat Gen. Santos, 72-61, and level their best-of-five quarterfinal showdown in the Smart Liga Pilipinas Conference II playoffs at the Xavier University Gym in Cagayan de Oro City Tuesday.

The top seeded Meteors rode on a big scoring run in the first quarter to gain the momentum then went to finish off the MP Warriors, who took the opener, 77-75.

MisOr came out with a surprise package in guard Lyndon Gudez, who hit 15 points after going scoreless in the first game while three others churned out double-digit scores for the Meteors.

MVP candidate Mark Yee had 14 points, Joey Mente chipped in 14 points while Erian Daja tossed in 10 points.

“I always remind the players to maintain their aggressiveness,” said MisOr coach Jun Noel. “We worked hard to earn the top spot in the standings and we intend to keep playing that way.”

GenSan actually roared back from a 9-22 deficit in the opening period with a big second quarter run as the Warriors moved within, 31-33, at the turn.

But Mente took over and fired six of his 12 points at resumption en route to another nine-point run by the home team in the third period as the Meteors sat on a 55-40 cushion heading into the fourth quarter.