Cruz lifts Welcoat to PBL crown

Celino Cruz drilled in two free throws off Rysal Castro in the final 1.9 seconds as Welcoat Paints drove past Shark Energy Drink, 62-60, yesterday to capture the first PBL Open Invitational crown at the Makati Coliseum.

Cruz’s heroics came after Rolly Basilides scored on a jumper in the final 54.7 seconds that tied the count at 60, 54.7 seconds remaining in the contest.

In the ensuing play, Yancy de Ocampo, named the Most Valuable Player, muffed a three-point attempt with 40 seconds to go but the Paint Masters regained possession after Topex Robinson stepped on the baseline with 15.6 seconds left.

"As expected, the match turned out tight to the very last second. But the boys showed determination and grit in the crucial endgame, just as what they’ve shown in winning the past five championships," said Welcoat Paints coach Junel Baculi on his second off-season title after copping the second Athlete’s Haven Cup in Baguio last August.

The match went through five deadlocks and two lead changes, the last after De Ocampo and Jojo Manalo starred in a 9-2 run that turned a 49-54 deficit into a 58-56 Welcoat lead, two minutes remaining in the game.

Jojo Manalo led with 15 points and three rebounds while De Ocampo came through with 15 points, 12 rebounds and three blocks.

Castro paced Shark with 19 points and six rebounds while Basilides added 17.

PBL commissioner Chino Trinidad attributed the success of the first PBL Open Invitational to PBL chairman Dioceldo Sy who conceptualized the said project.

"I salute chairman Dioceldo Sy for this project since we were able to discover a lot of talents aside from those playing in the NCAA and the UAAP," said Trinidad.

"But the best thing we achieved in this tournament is that we were able to prove the trust of the public in PBL. Our loyal PBL fans continued their support and we were quite surprised with the number of teams which participated in the event," he added.