DEFENDING champion MGC New Life Christian Academy opened its title-retention bid in the 18-under Boys Juniors Division of the 5th Philippine Ching Yuen Athletic Association (PCYAA) basketball competitions with a 67-40 rout of Uno High School last Sunday at the Filoil Flying V Centre in San Juan City.
The New Lifers got off to a slow start before turning up the heat in the second quarter when an 8-0 run gave them a 32-18 lead at halftime behind Mcneil Jason Si’s 10 points.
MGC-NLCA headed into the fourth period with a commanding 45-25 advantage as the Uneans could not make any headway throughout the final 20 minutes.
Si collected 16 points and 13 rebounds for MGC-NLCA, which lost several rotation players from last season’s successful title quest due to graduation and other reasons. Two other New Lifers scored in double figures – Ike Jordan Lim, 11, and Paolo Reyes, 10.
In the other opening-day matches, host Jubilee Christian Academy led from start to finish in crushing Grace Christian College, 86-56; Saint Jude Catholic School edged league-debuting Saint Stephen’s High School, 67-65; and Philippine Cultural College downed Pace Academy, 75-72, in overtime.
Team skipper Carlo Lim collected 25 points, including 12 straight midway through the fourth canto, and had 12 rebounds, four steals and two assists for the Jubileeans, who were never seriously threatened after netting the game’s first seven points.
Grace Christian College came no closer than 14 points (52-38) after intermission and its final 30-point losing margin was its largest in the contest.
Kyle Barraza backed up Lim with two triples and 18 points. Marcus Lu chalked up a team-high 22 points and Ralph Lim posted a double-double with 11 points and 13 rebounds for Grace.
Mallechi Colby Lim knocked in 18 points, including three free throws that gave Saint Jude Catholic School a 67-62 lead, and Lance Graeham Chan stole the ball in Saint Stephen’s final possession as the Judenites hung on for a two-point win.
Philippine Cultural College opened the overtime period with five unanswered points on a three-point play by D’Lanor Angelo Tan and an inside play by Rafael Ckenji Pangilinan to move ahead, 75-70, after Pace’s Pol Antiporda tied the count at regulation time, 70-all, on a pair of free throws with 30 seconds remaining.
Jeff Lugay made a fielder to trim the Pacers’ deficit to three, 75-72. After Pangilinan missed a pair of charity shots in the final 2.7 seconds, Antiporda hoisted a Hail Mary three-point attempt past halfcourt that was completely off target.
Tan finished with 31 points spiked by six triples and Michael Manansala had 16 of his 22 markers in the second half for the Seagulls.
The Pacers got 20 points from Antiporda, 16 from Lugay and 11 from Dean Ong.
In the lone 18-under Girls Juniors Division, Jubilee Christian Academy stunned three-time defending champion Uno High School, 53-51, to join Saturday winners Saint Stephen’s High School and Saint Jude Catholic School.
Bannered by Sandra Villacruz’s 20 points, the nerve-wracking victory shattered the Lady Uneans’ 31-game win streak over three title seasons.
Villacruz, who committed her fourth foul just 18 seconds into the third quarter, held on to tally seven points in the payoff canto, including an insurance free throw with three ticks left that gave JCA a 53-51 lead following teammate Marie Tan’s twinner at the 24.4-second mark for the sixth lead change in the final 5:21.
Uno’s Michaella Co misfired on a desperate heave at the game buzzer to preserve Jubilee’s win.
Jubilee, a finalist in the last two seasons, also got 17 markers from Tan.
Burly Gelsey Taguibao (19), Co (18) and Patricia Yap (10) combined for 47 points for Uno, which went down to its first defeat in 32 outings.
Tuesday’s (January 14) games at the Uno High school gym features a doubleheader involving Uno and Saint Jude Catholic School in both the Girls Juniors Division (5:30 p.m.) and Boys Juniors Division (7 p.m.).