CEBU, Philippines - Could this be the year of the University of San Carlos (USC) in grassroots age group basketball? Chances are looking good after USC won both the SBP and Passerelle division titles at the CYBL VISMIN Goodwill Games 2013 held at the SHS-Ateneo de Cebu Gym in Canduman, Mandaue City.
First to step up to the plate was the USC SBP team which outscored St. John’s Institute (SJI) of Bacolod, 49-42. This was followed up by USC’s humbling of Ateneo de Iloilo, 51-36, for the Passerelle division championship.
The SBP championship game was a see-saw affair for the first half with SJI leading 10-9 after the first period then USC taking a 23-22 lead at halftime. USC got some breathing room in the third quarter when they took a 36-30 lead going into the payoff period behind the seven third quarter points of Zhar Antontio Octaviano.
After SJI’s Daniel Coo drilled a triple to cut the lead to 30-29, USC ran off a 6-1 run to end the period. SJI replied with a 5-0 run to start the fourth period to cut the lead to 36-35. An exchange of 4-0 runs made it 40-39 with over three minutes left in the game.
Rasheed Libradilla then drilled a triple to launch a 7-0 run for a 47-39 lead with two minutes remaining. Miguel Sarmiento made a triple to slice the lead to 47-42 with 1:47 left, but the Bacolod cagers couldn’t get any closer as Libradilla iced the game with another field goal for the final tally. The USC win made up for their earlier loss to SJI in group play. Octaviano and Libradilla led USC with nine points each. Kurt Co led SJI with eight.
If the SBP game was close all the way, the Passerelle championship game was close only in the first half. Everything else was an all USC show.
After taking a slim 10-9 lead at the end of the first quarter and a 24-17 halftime lead, USC broke the game wide open in the third period behind the trio of Jholo Pakanna, Jean Jacque Antigua and Neville Morales. The USC third quarter set’s defense also handcuffed the visitors from Iloilo as they limited them to only seven points in the quarter for a comfortable 38-24 lead and complete control of the game. It was cruise control in the fourth period with the lead ballooning to as many as 21 points. acott Aying led a balanced USC offense with 11 points.
It was a double celebration for the USC program with all coaches present at the finals led by sports director Saturn Mayormita. The teams are now looking forward to their final preparations for the upcoming major tournaments of the school-year such as the Milo-backed BEST SBP Passerelle Twin Tournaments and the City Olympics. The USC SBP team is the defending Visayas regional champion and was runner-up to La Salle Greenhills at the national finals. The Passerelle team was runner-up to UV in the Cebu finals of 2012.
The third edition of the CYBL VISMIN Goodwill Games is an annual summer tournament featuring the top SBP and Passerelle teams from the Visayas and Mindanao. SJI and Ateneo de Iloilo fielded teams in both SBP and Passerelle divisions, while the NOODA Warriors of Bacolod and Xavier University/Ateneo de Cagayan participated in the SBP division. The CYBL teams in the tournament included Sacred Heart School-Ateneo de Cebu, Cebu Eastern College, Don Bosco Technology Center, University of San Jose Recoletos and St. Benedict’s Child Learning Center. (FREEMAN)