Taguig ousts Munti, enters Coke Hoopla semifinal

MANILA, Philippines -  Taguig ousted last year’s champion Muntinlupa, 90-73, to clinch the last semifinal berth in the Inter-Zonal phase of the second Coca-Cola Hoopla National Capital Region Championship at the Muntinlupa Sports Complex over the weekend.

Christian Barro, Armin Santos, Efren Parado and Carl Francis Loresca led Taguig’s furious 10-0 run to turn a 54-61 deficit into a three-point lead at the close of the third period.

The Taguig cagers sustained its run in the fourth with top gunner Joshua Mayor sparking another binge to pad the team’s lead to 74-65 en route to victory, which avenged its 77-79 setback to the same team that forced the rubber match.

Taguig (South) thus joined early qualifiers Quezon City (East), Mandaluyong (Central), Caloocan (North), and Antipolo (West) in the two-round affair which started yesterday at the Mandaluyong gym.

The fifth-placed team gets eliminated in the Inter-Zonal while the top four teams clash in the crossover semis with the Nos. 1 and 2 teams holding twice-to-beat advantages.

The finals of the grassroots project launched by JB Baylon, Powerade Tigers governor and Coca-Cola Export vice president for communication and public affairs, will be a best-of-three affair.