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BATCH ’91 Scoots Past Batch ’92, 67-54
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St. Andrew's School Gym, June 13, 2003 -- The Jakolites of Batch 91 played its best basketball in the last two quarters to claim at least a tie for a semi-final slot with a come from behind 67-54 victory over Batch ’92. “We are glad to get this win. Tumatag ang depensa namin nung second half, tapos kinarga kami ni Mike sa scoring lalo nung third quarter,” said Batch ’91 Jakolites’ coach Rani Magayanes. Black Superman Mike Mendoza shot fatal baskets deep in the heart of Batch 92’s defense while boy band F4 (http://www.sonymusic.com.tw/pop/f4/) member Ronald Pangan put the necessary handcuffs on ex-PCU guard Leon Pablo as the Jakolites built a 10 point lead in the deciding third quarter. This was the foundation with which the Jakolites leaned on during the latter part of the game. Despite coming into the game with players stressed from work, the Jakolites stayed in the game throughout, although fatigue may have caught up with them at the end of the second quarter. That is when Batch 92 made a surge. Batch 92 had its shinning moments in the second quarter as they were able to build a lead as high as 6 points. The second quarter saw Batch 92 using nifty drive and drop plays that caught the Jakolites off guard. The first half finished with Batch 92 ahead by 3 points. At the start of the third quarter, the Jakolites tightened up on defense which led to several fastbreak baskets from Roel “Parating Kargado” Rianzares, Vince "The Rifleman" Samoy and Francis “Star” Estrella. “It was a hard-fought game, we know they weren’t going to lie down for us,” Mendoza told reporters. “We just kept playing all the way through, which was good for us.” "Our ultimate goal is to go to the champioship,” said Gado “Fresh Prince” Salvador. Vince “Nowitzski” Tabing, Jason “Lastikman” Minoza and the Black Superman (collectively as the Big Three) took their turns in swatting shots inside the paint and cornering important rebounds. Batch 92 did a good job clogging the lanes against the Big Three and containing Mendoza in the first half. But the Jakolites started to pull away in the third quarter, using a calculated attack from the inside and outside to lead as much as 10 points in the third quarter. Gilbert "The Sergeant" Alatraca arrived (from work) just in time before the start of the fourth quater to provide substantial strength to the Jakolites' final attack in last canto. The win was the fourth straight for the Batch ’91, who will try to clinch an outright semifinal slot with a win on Sunday, 22 June, against Batch ‘90. Special mention to Gado's fiancee and Mike’s wife, who went to the game to provide support. by Irani Magayanes |
