CEBU, Philippines - Slowly but surely, things are looking brighter for Team Cebu as they scored their third straight win without a loss via a 52-39 trashing of erstwhile undefeated Valenzuela, 52-39, at the national finals of the Coca Cola PBA Youngstars Tournament 2014 at the JCSGO Gym in Cubao.
Seeking a third straight trip to the championship game of this annual summer tournament, the Lancers backed-Cebu squad enjoyed a hot start for a first time, taking a 20-6 lead at the end of the first quarter. Cebu kept Valenzuela at bay for a 26-14 halftime lead before cruising to the win.
Cebu used a solid zone defense to shut down their co pre-tournament favorites for the title. Joshua Flores led Cebu anew with 17 points while Jifford Cahigas added 13.
The squad will now play Batangas and Cagayan de Oro. A sweep of both games will give Cebu the top spot in the team standings, while a loss will complicate the top three ranking with a possibility of a triple tie.
Batangas is expected to go all out for an upset win as it seeks to make it to the championship via the backdoor. They had earlier lost to Valenzuela and are hoping for a Cebu loss to create a possible three-way tie at the top.
Cebu sits on top of the six-team finals with a 3-0 record followed by Valenzuela (2-1), Batangas (2-1), KABAKA Manila (1-2), Pampanga (1-2) and Cagayan de Oro (0-3). The top two teams at the end of the classification phase will play for the championship in a sudden-death game. (FREEMAN)