3rd CESAFI Partners' Cup Finals: UC upstages SWU in opener

CEBU, Philippines – The Enervon C/UC Webmasters lost an 18-point lead late in the second quarter, but preyed on Southwestern University’s string of endgame lapses and horrendous free-throw shooting to hack out a vengeful 99-89 win over the Cobras and gain a 1-0 upstart in their best-of-five championship series in the 3rd CESAFI Partners’ Cup the other night at the Cebu Coliseum.

The Webmasters shoot for a commanding 2-0 lead when they take on the Cobras anew in Game 2 at 6:30 tonight still at the same venue.

It was obvious that the Webmasters’ victory was aided by their free throws but still they found it very difficult to pull away despite scoring 15 points from the stripe courtesy of countless trips from the time the Cobras went into the penalty situation at the final six-minute mark of the contest.

Since June Mar Fajardo was so dominant at the post, the Cobras kept on sending the 6-foot-9 center to the foul line which eventually went to UC’s advantage. Fajardo had a monster 37-point showing for the Webmasters.

When the Cobras erased a 27-45 deficit with 4:28 remaining before halftime, they suddenly came strong in the final period as Alfred Belande sank back-to-back triples and then Eric Zanoria converted a short jumper that enabled them to grab the driver’s seat, 79-77.

Stocky guard Aard Diango again sent the pro-SWU crowd into frenzy when he knocked in 3-pointer to push the Cobras on top anew, 85-84, but Kevin Juliance quickly doused cold water on the Cobras’ fierce rally by hitting four straight free throws to put the Webmasters back in front, 88-85, with 2:53 left to play.

When the scored stood at 94-89 in favor of UC with 27 ticks left before the final buzzer, the Cobras gained a rare lifeline when Fajardo was whistled for a technical foul for hanging in the rim after missing a two-hander slam dunk attempt.

The Cobras, however, blew away their chances when Eliud Poligrates flubbed his charities. That sealed SWU’s doom. Prior to that, Clifford Maguate went 1-of-4 from the line.

Aside from Fajardo, big-hearted pointguard Janssen Abella also deserved an honorable mention for his huge 23-point contribution capped by a barelling drive off a phalanx of SWU defenders in the closing seconds that got a standing ovation from UC fans.

Edward Pao and Juliane also rose to the occasion with 12 and 11 points, respectively, as the Webmasters aveneged its 79-89 defeat to the Cobras during the elimination round.

Zanoria paced the Cobras with 19 points, while Poligartes added 16 markers.

The scores

Enervon/UC (99) — Fajardo 37, Abella 23, Pao 12, Juliane 11, Rogado 8, Cueva 4, Agas 2, Ramos 2

Hotel Fortuna/SWU (89) — Zanoria 19, Poligrates 16, Diango 12, Belande 9, Gallarde 9, Maguate 7, Pacquiao 6, Armecin 5, Litorja 4, Jalandoni 2 Halftime: 51-37 –THE FREEMAN