ILOILO City – Hua Siong College of Iloilo Red Phoenix remained a dominant force in the Iloilo Private Schools Athletic Association (ILOPRISAA) secondary boys basketball in its return after three years.
The Red Phoenix has successfully retained their championship with a 79-62 rout of St. Robert’s International Academy Panda Rockets on Wednesday at the University of San Agustin Gym here.
The Red Phoenix quickly went to work in the opening quarter as they raced to a 23-12 advantage before the Panda Rockets made its presence felt in the second quarter as they outscore their foes, 20-16, for a 39-32 halftime score.
Hua Siong, however, went on a scoring binge after the break en route to a 60-45 upperhand. The Red Phoenix did not slow down in the final quarter as they padded the lead further to 17 points.
Red Phoenix head coach Vincent Conlu said that his players were extra motivated against the Panda Rockets after they lose to them in a pre-season tournament last year.
“Credit goes to St. Robert’s and coach John (Guanco) they were really a tough opponent and all of their players were as talented as ours,” Conlu told Panay News.
“We are also just extra motivated against St. Robert’s because we want to bounce back from our loss to them in another tournament last year,” he added.
The Red Phoenix had a twice-to-beat advantage in the championship round after beating Santa Clarita International School Primes and Panda Rockets in the semifinals round on Tuesday.
Up next for the Red Phoenix is the Regional PRISAA where they will be facing other Western Visayas-based teams for a chance to represent the region in the National PRISAA slated later this year.
“This is just the start for us. We will be more intense in our training for the upcoming Regional, and hopefully, have another chance to represent our region in the nationals,” Conlu said./PN
