MANILA – Bacolod City of Smiles dropped to their third straight defeat in the 2023 Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League. It lost 89-77 to Zamboanga Family’s Brand Sardines on Wednesday night at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig City.
It was a heart-breaking defeat for the Bacolod City-based squad as they were up by double-digits in the first two quarters before succumbing to Zamboanga City in the second half.
From a tight start, Bacolod City created separation from Zamboanga City behind the offensive explosion of Valandre Chauca and inside hits from Justine Alano as they established a 27-16 lead.
Bacolod City went on to build its largest lead at 30-16 after a three-pointer from James Mangahas but Zamboanga City went on a huge run to cut the deficit to 25-30 after a triple by Judel Fuentes.
The Bacolodnons, however, responded with back-to-back baskets from homegrown player Domark Matillano and an inside hit by Mangahas to maintain a 37-29 halftime advantage.
Zamboanga City turned things around in the third quarter with connections from Jayvee and Jaycee Marcelino to take a 40-39 lead but back-to-back treys from Mangahas regained a 45-42 lead for Bacolod City.
Both teams traded leads from that point until Zamboanga City went on a huge rally behind Jaycee, Jayvee and Fuentes for a 57-50 lead before Bacolod City managed to cut it to 56-57 entering the final quarter.
Zamboanga City took control of the game for good in the fourth quarter as conversions from Adrian Santos, Cyrus Tabi and the Marcelino brothers gave them the largest lead of 77-63.
Jaycee had a near triple-double showing for the 6-2 Zamboanga City with 18 points, 11 assists and eight rebounds, while Jayvee and King Caralipio added 13 and 12 markers, respectively.
Mangahas led the way with 20 points, including five three-point conversions, while Matillano and Chauca chipped in 15 markers apiece. Bacolod City dropped to 3-6 in the standings.
BOX SCORE:
ZAMBOANGA 89 – JC Marcelino 18, JV Marcelino 13, Caralipio 12, Fuentes 9, Maiquez 8, Santos 7, Dumapig 6, Tabi 6, Tansingco 5, Bautista 4, Lasco 1, Grimaldo 0, Mahari 0.
BACOLOD 77 – J. Mangahas 20, Chauca 15, Matillano 15, Cantimbuhan 9, Koga 5, Alano 4, Sarangay 4, Sedillo 3, Alves 2, Stevens 0, Menguez 0, Pabilona 0, Pastias 0.
Quarterscores: 16-27, 29-37, 57-56, 89-77./PN
