MANILA, Philippines - Kenneth Duremdes hit a tough fade-away shot in the dying seconds as Mighty Sports pulled off a pulsating 80-78 win over Nougat Candy to advance to the finals of the Rep. Neptali Gonzales Cup at the RTU gym in Mandaluyong over the weekend.
After scoring the go-ahead basket, Duremdes came through with a steal to preserve his heroics and complete Mighty’s stirring comeback.
Mighty Sports actually fell behind by six points in the last two minutes, but called on Duremdes’ hot hands to set up a title clash with Gerry’s Grill.
The 1998 PBA MVP paced Mighty Sports with 24 points while former UP star Edrick Ferrer and Luis Palaganas backed him up with a combined 30-point output.
Mighty Sports, handled by former UP star Pat Aquino, is hoping to nail its first title this year after more than a year of absence in the commercial league.
“After a long while, we’ll be playing in the finals again. We hope to win this tournament,” said Aquino.