By Adrian Stewart Co
MJAS Zenith-Talisay City Aquastars maintained their unblemished slate in the 2021 Chooks-to-Go Pilipinas VisMin Super Cup after an 84-75 triumph over ARQ Builders Lapu-Lapu City Heroes on Saturday, April 17, at the Alcantara Civic Center in Cebu.
Jhaymo Eguilos top-scored with 18 points and eight rebounds, Patrick Cabahug added 17 points, while Paolo Hubalde contributed 16 points, seven boards, and nine assists as the Aquastars improved to 4-0.
Despite being shorthanded with the suspension of several players, the Heroes was able to keep in step with the Aquastars since the start and were even on top 67-64 midway in the fourth period after a triple by Hafer Mondragon.
The Aquastars answered with five straight points from Cabahug to take a 69-67 lead before completing their 16-2 scoring blast with baskets from Hubalde, Eguilos and Darrell Menina for an 80-69 advantage.
“Kailangan talaga magising ang team namin and this match was a wake up call for us,” said Aquastars head coach Aldrin Morante. “Lahat ng teams dito gusto kami talunin. Magigising talaga kami ngayon.”
Vincent Minguito finished with 13 points and seven rebounds, Chris Regero added 12 while Jerick Cañada fell short of triple-double with 10 points, 15 assists, and eight rebounds for the Heroes (3-1).
The Heroes missed the services of Jercules Tangkay, Reed Juntilla, Monbert Arong, Dawn Ochea, and Ferdinand Lusdoc as they are still serving their round-long suspension due to their controversial match with axed Siquijor Mystics last week.
Meanwhile, Tabogon Voyagers ignited the offense in the second half as they score a come-from-behind 86-78 victory over Dumaguete Warriors. The Voyagers improved to 2-2, while the Warriors dropped to 1-3.
Down by as much as 12 points, the Voyagers took control of the game late in the third with an 11-5 burst sparked Peter De Ocampo and Joemari Lacastesantos’ outside sniping that helped them snatch the lead for good.
Lacastesantos led the Voyagers with 18 points, nine assists and six rebounds, De Ocampo chipped in 15 points while Normel Delos Reyes contributed 14 points, three rebounds, and two steals./ASC, WDJ