MANILA – Basilan BRT Sumisip Peace Riders opened its bid for back-to-back titles in the 2021 Chooks-to-Go Pilipinas VisMin Super Cup 2nd Conference with a 78-75 escape over Iligan Archangels on Saturday night at the Pagadian City Gymnasium.
The victory of the new-look Peace Riders, however, was not easy. They saw their once 12-point advantage trimmed to a solitary possession by a furious endgame rally by the Archangels.
Clinging to a 73-61 advantage with under seven minutes in the match, the Archangels went on a 10-4 scoring blast capped by a Lester Tamayo layup to trim the deficit to four with 20.1 seconds left.
The Peace Riders, the champions in the league’s inaugural edition early this year, leaned on the steady hands of Cedric de Joya to secure the victory with his clutch free throws.
“Sabi ko sa kanila noong start ng fourth quarter, mag-focus lang sa game,” said Peace Riders interim coach Ron Jalmanzar. “Expected na namin na dikdikan ang laban kasi ito ang first time na nabuo kami.”
Junjie Hallare exploded with 31 points on an efficient 14-of-23 shooting to go with six rebounds and two steals. Nikko Panganiban added 17 points including two triples, while Med Salim had six points, 12 rebounds, five assists, and a steal.
Arche Salo and Jack Hoyohoy led the balanced scoring of Iligan with 12 points apiece, the latter adding 14 rebounds. Kris Daguisonan chalked up 11 points, eight rebounds, and four assists, while Tamayo chimed in 10 points and 11 rebounds.
In the second game, home team Pagadian Explorers relied on Jezhreel Acaylar in the endgame to score a 56-52 triumph over Roxas Vanguards and join Peace Riders with 1-0 slate.
With the score tied at 50-all with over two minutes left, Acaylar canned a lay-in before nailing another basket to give the Explorers a 54-50 lead. The Vanguards cut it to 52-54 courtesy of Kent Segura before Pagadian sealed the win on freebies.
Acaylar finished the game with seven points, while Edzel Mag-isa dropped a double-double for the Explorers with 11 points and 12 rebounds. Niño Ibañez also finished with 11 markers.
BOX SCORE:
BASILAN 78 – Hallare 31, Panganiban 17, Lunor 7, Saliddin 6, Salim 6, De Joya 4, Ferrer 3, Daa 2, Luciano 2, Julkipli 0, Solis 0.
ILIGAN 75 – Salo 12, Hoyohoy 12, Daguisonan 11, Tamayo 10, Dela Rea 9, Torres 7, Aparice 5, Rivera 3, Tolentino 2, Cecilio 0, Bautista 0.
Quarterscores: 20-20, 44-43, 65-61, 78-75/PN
