TEAM Tarlac overhauled a 20-point deficit to stun Royal Trading Star Don Bosco-Dumaguete, 86-84, on Sunday in the Division 2 finals in the 2023 Smart-NBTC National Finals presented by SM at the Mall of Asia Arena.
Team Tarlac took its first championship in the NBTC in style, falling behind, 59-39, before mounting the huge fight back.
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“This is a big thing for us, our province, and all provincial teams. We've shown we can compete,” said Team Tarlac coach Julius Dela Vega.
Earl Sapasap scored a lay-up to spark a run that enabled Team Tarlac to grab an 82-78 lead which they maintained until the final buzzer.
Sapasap later won the Most Outstanding Player award in Division 2.
Sapasap, Matthew Jucom of Don Bosco Dumaguete, Lebron Nieto of Ateneo, Kaden Puletua of Homegrown Australia, and Sean Bondoc of Doc Boleros were named to the Division 2 Mythical Team.
Team Tarlac joins Batangas' De La Salle Lipa, Cagayan de Oro's Assumption Montessori School, and Pampanga's St. Augustine Institute on the Division 2 champions list.
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