ALCANTARA — MJAS Zenith-Talisay City completed a first-round sweep of the Chooks-to-Go Pilipinas VisMin Super Cup-Visayas Leg eliminations with a convincing 85-65 rout of Tabogon, Tuesday at the Civic Center here in Cebu.
Leading by just five with 39-34 entering the third canto, the Aquastars flipped a switch and took their game to another level in the third, outscoring the Voyagers 28-10 to open a huge 23-point lead, 67-44, heading to the final stanza.
Perimeter marksman Patrick Cabahug and athletic wingmen Egie Boy Mojica and Jaymar Gimpayan were especially lethal during the last 10 minutes of the game as they accounted for a whopping 26 of the team’s 28 points as the Aquastars led by as much as 28, 83-55, and never looked back en route to logging in their fifth win in as many games.
Cabahug and Mojica led the team with 13 points each.
Gimpayan almost had a double-double with nine points and nine rebounds while big man Jhaymo Eguilos added eight points, seven boards, three assists, and three blocked shots.
With the team being so dominant, skipper Paulo Hubalde played limited minutes but still had eight assists to go with four points and four rebounds.
Paolo Hubalde orchestrates the Aquastars offense.
Despite finishing the first round with a five-game sweep, MJAS-Talisay head coach Aldrin Morante warned his squad to not let their guard down.
"Yung mga teams paghahandaan kami niyan kaya hindi kami puwede magkumpiyansa," said Morante. "Babalik na rin yung mga players ng ARQ kaya dapat namin paghandaan 'yun."
Cebuano wingman Gayford Rodriguez debuted in style for Tabogon as the former Rain or Shine draft pick had 18 points and five rebounds. However, it wasn’t enough as the Voyagers dropped to 2-3 to end their first round campaign.
Arvie Bringas contributed 16 points, 10 boards, two assists, and two steals even as Joemari Lacastesantos had 13 points, four rebounds, and six dimes.
Harold Arboleda missed his third straight game due to a nagging knee injury.
MJAS-Talisay opens its second round campaign on Thursday against Tubigon Bohol at 3PM. Tabogon, on the other hand, faces ARQ-Lapu Lapu later on in the day.
The Scores:
Talisay (85) -- Cabahug 13, Mojica 13, Gimpayan 9, Eguilos 8, Moralde 7, Dela Cerna 6, Villafranca 4, Hubalde 4, Albina 3, Alvarez 3, Santos 2, Menina 2, Ugsang 2, Cuyos 0.
Tabogon (65) -- Rodriguez 18, Bringas 16, Lacastesantos 13, Delos Reyes 5, Orquina 3, Vitug 3, De Ocampo 3, Sombero 2, Bersabal 2, Diaz 0, Caballero 0.
Quarterscores: 23-13, 39-34, 67-44, 85-65.
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