Shell '78-85 now 6-0 and still counting

CEBU, Philippines - Chester Cokaliong can shoot 3-pointers with pin-point accuracy. There’s no question about that. The thing of beauty is that he can also deliver the goods when it mattered most for his team.

Cokaliong made crucial hits in the final half where he poured in 16 of his game-high 31 points to help Shell ‘78/85 dispose Gregoria’s Curtains and Trim Haus ‘89/93, 79-72, and stay unbeaten in the Cebu Eastern College Alumni Basketball Association’s 11th Dr. Chen Lieh Fu Memorial Cup last Thursday night at the City Sports Club-Cebu gym.

Cokaliong, who sank a season-high tying nine triples and shot a perfect 2-of-2 from the 2-point field goal, deposited 11 points in the third period where Class ‘78/85 outgunned Class ‘89/83, 19-14, to secure a seven-point headway, 65-58, going into the payoff period.

Explosive center-forward Edwin Kaw then joined the scoring parade in the closing minutes of the contest to buffer Class ‘78/85 from repeated comeback attempts by the stubborn Class ‘89/93 cagers.

Kaw, who shot 9-of-17 from the field, finished with 20 points and five rebounds, while unpredictable forward Wilson Yu basked in the glow of a memorable night with a career first triple-double anchored on his 11-point, 16-rebound, and 10-assist performance.

Peppery guard Joel Chan scored only seven this time, but is worth mentioning for with 14 rebounds and nine assists across his name as Class ‘78/85 tightened its grip of the overall lead in Division I with an immaculate 6-0 slate.

Ryan Alex Mendez sparkled with 27 points, five rebounds and two assists for Class ‘89/93, which stayed winless in six starts. Archie Bejer had 18 points, four assists, three steals and three rebounds, while Joseph Allan Chiang wound up with 10 points, four rebounds and three steals in a losing cause.

In the other game, Donald Anthony Ting exploded with a season-best 36 points as Centennial Hardware ‘95 bombed out PTT Lubricants 2005, 99-69, to improved its win-loss record to 7-2.

Class ‘95 led by only four early on, 16-12, but dropped a devastating 30-12 bomb in the second period to rip the game apart at halftime, 46-24. Class 2005 countered with a 30-20 rally in the third, but Class ‘95 closed the match with a 33-15 bang for the 30-point blowout.

Four players heavily backed up Ting on the offensive end for Class ‘95. Dean Dy Teves had 14 points, 16 rebounds, three assists and three steals, Joseph James Yu had 14 and John Michael Gerson and Erwon Ong finished with 10 markers apiece.  

Philip John Lua pumped in 24 points and Kent Benedict Uy added 15 for Class 2005, which crashed to 2-7.

The scores

First game

Class ‘78/85 (79) - Cokaliong 31, Kaw 20, Yu 11, Chan 7, Palomas 6, Yap 4

Class ‘89/93 (72) - Mendez 27, Bejer 18, Chiang 10, Ong 7, Tan 6, Rojas 2, Ting 2

Second game

Class ‘95 (99) - Ting 36, Dy Teves 14, Yu 12, Ong 10, Gerson 10, Dy 6, Ho 6, Gue 5

Class 2005 (69) - Lua 24, Uy 15, Alegado 9, Ang 7, Lee 5, Ramiro 4, Tiu 3, Go 2 – EBV   (THE FREEMAN)