Cobras gun for second victory

CEBU, Philippines - The Southwestern University Cobras gun for back-to-back wins when they take on the University of Southern Philippines Foundation Panthers in the 15th Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation, Inc. men’s basketball tournament today at the Cebu Coliseum.

In sharp contrast to the previous seasons where they were a dominant force, the Cobras carry with them the ‘underdog’ tag this time fighting without a foreign reinforcement in an already depleted lineup of only nine players.

Despite that handicap, no one still can underestimate the Cobras because aside from playing with pride being the defending champions, they also have two of the best coaching minds in the league in Raul ‘Yayoy’ D. Alcoseba and Mike Reyes. 

But given their current setup, it can’t be denied that the Cobras are bound to cross rough waters in their title defense. In fact during their previous game, they were made to work extra hard before scoring their first win of the season at the expense of the Cebu Institute of Technology-University Wildcats,  69-64.

The Cobras hope to make it two in a row when they tackle another lowly squad in USPF Panthers at 6:45 tonight.

As usual, the Cobras will rely on the likes of Mark Jayven Tallo, Jovanie Luz, Melvin Holper, Jesse Bautista, Jan Michael Auditor, and Anton Pardo among other to carry their load on both ends of the court.

The Panthers, on the other hand, will count on Dan Dexter Silorio, Kino Mathews Bajamunde, Brantford Borces, Jayson Cando, Lyndon Colina and John Alocillo as they seek to bounce back from the 64-88 thrashing dealt by the University of San Carlos Warriors.

In the juniors division, the University of the Visayas Baby Lancers will try to rebound from a disappointing 43-65 loss to the University of San Jose-Recoletos Baby Jaguars whey they battle the Don Bosco Technology Center Greywolves in the opening match set at 5:15 p.m. (FREEMAN)