Meteors break Niños' heartsReferees controversial call helps MisOr rule Cebu City leg of Liga

CEBU, Philippines - The trend continues. No home team has won a title right at its own backward in the Liga Pilipinas Conference II, so far.

Mark Yee calmly sank a pair of pressure-packed free throws with three-tenths of a second left in the game to power the Misamis Oriental Meteors to a controversial 69-68 win over the M. Lhuillier Kwarta Padala-Cebu Niños and rule the Cebu City leg before a stunned Cebuano fans last night at the University of San Carlos (USC)-Main gym.

Although lucky breaks were on their side, MisOr's triumph was partly aided by the contentious call of referee Wilbert Culanag that drew the ire of the entire M. Lhuillier bench and their army of supporters.

After Stephen Padilla knocked in a triple off a nifty assist by Mark Ababon that put the Niños on top, 68-67, with 23 seconds left to play, the Meteors of Governor Oscar Moreno had the final possession.

In the ensuing sequence, Dexter Micutuan flubbed a 3-point attempt, but Erian Daja got the offensive rebound and quickly lobbed a put-back that went airball.

As the players of the contending squads were in mad scramble for the leather, whistle from the referee were suddenly heard and when the dust settled, Cebu's Ariel Mepaña was called for a foul against Yee, who turned out to be the surprise hero for MisOr.

Showing nerves of steel, Yee cooly shrugged off the roaring distractions incited by the pro-Cebu crowd by sinking his charities, the last one clearly broke the hearts of the Niños as they have no more time to lunch one final offensive.

Our of frustration, M. Lhuillier coach Raul "Yayoy" D. Alcoseba and a few others rushed to confront Culanag but proverbial cooler heads prevailed to put the situation under control.

While many frowned at Culanag's call that foiled what could have been a sweet home victory for the Niños, Liga Pilipinas technical committee chief Perry Martinez defended the referee's decision.

"There's an old school thought that a referee should not make a call in the endgame. That should not be the case now because a decision has to be made. If the referee won't make a call, it seems that he's the one who decides the game," said Martinez.

Liga Pilipinas executive director Jose Emmanuel "Noli" Eala echoed Marrtinez's remarks. A call has to me made. It's a tough one, but there are breaks of the game. We're going to review the tape and see what improvements we can make," said Eala. "Both teams played well and it was a beautiful game. Let's not take away that victory," he added.

Ironically, Culanag was the same referee who made a highly questionable call that helped the MisOr pull off a 61-56 victory over Taguig Batang Global in their knockout semifinal match the other day at the Cebu Coliseum.

With the score stood at 56-all, Yee drove strong to the basket but Culanag called Taguig's Lou Gatumbato with a foul with one second remaining in the game. The decision instigated howls of protest from the Taguig bench resulting into a pair of technical fouls. Yee then went 5-of-6 from the line to seal MisOr's win.

The Taguig cagers went home all forlorn, feeling that they were being robbed of a victory. The Niños felt that way too.

It was indeed a disappointing loss for the Niños, who used a 21-3 run in the second period to turn a 17-23 deficit into a 12-point advantage, 38-26, with 1:55 left before halftime. The Meteors rallied back with finesse to wrest the driver's seat, 67-63, on Rocky Sanchez's free throws with 2:04 left in the contest.

The rest of the match was so full of thrill and excitement that left the spectators as if they were watching a horror movie. It turned out to be referee Culanag was the chief villain for stabbing the Niños' heart.

Daja and Joey Mente, who was crowned leg MVP, each scored 14 points for the Meteors, while Ramil Tagupa pitched in 11 markers. Ariel Mepanaña netted 13 points, while Stephen Padilla and Mark Ababon scored 11 each for the Niños, who fumbled for the first time at home.

Earlier, Josh Urbiztondo sank six triples as the Smart-Pampanga Buddies eliminated Taguig-Batang Global, 88-81, to clinch the third place trophy. Urbiztondo, who spearheaded Pampanga's resilient comeback by drilling in four straight triples in the third period, finished with 23 points followed by Don Camaso with 16. – THE FREEMAN