Hawklets claim NAASCU title

MANILA, Philippines - University of Manila smothered AMA Computer University, 92-64, to capture the juniors crown in the NAASCU basketball league at the Pasay Sports Complex yesterday.

Mark Vincent Garcia came away with 34 points while Sherwin Castro dished out a double-double job of 16 points and 12 rebounds as the Hawklets recovered from a sloppy start to dominated the last three quarters en route to the one-sided victory.

The win capped UM’s domination of the 18-years-old-and-below division where the Hawklets swept all eight games, including six in the elims and a scrambling 70-67 victory over New Era University in the semifinal round.

Against the Baby Titans, the Hawklets struggled in the early going, trailing at 15-20 after the first 10 minutes. But the former five-time champions rode on a big scoring run in the second quarter to wrest control at 41-33 then sustained their pace in the second half to win pulling away.