Lancers off to quarters
THE University of the Visayas (UV) Green Lancers wrapped up its season with an emphatic 85-64 win over the University of Southern Philippines Foundation (USPF) Panters in the final day of the elimination round of the 2016 Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation Inc. (Cesafi) college basketball tournament at the Cebu Coliseum last night.
UV, which was one of the heavy tournament favorites wound up third place with a record of eight wins and four losses and will be playing the Panthers (3-9) in the quarterfinal round next Tuesday.
Because of their higher record, UV needed to be beaten twice by the Panthers to be eliminated.
The Lancers were primed to take the automatic semfiinals slot prior to the start of the tournament but failed after suffering four losses—two handed by its arch-nemesis Southwestern University Cobras and one each by the University of San Jose-Recoletos Jaguars and the University of San Carrlos Warriors.
Having to play in the quarterfinal round means one more game for UV to execute its game adjustments entering into the semifinal round.
It also means another day for Tristan Albina to get re-oriented into the system of coach Gary Cortes after being sidelined for two games because of fever.
Albina somehow was com- ing to his old self as he scored 12 points that helped UV pull away from a tight contest in the fourth quarter.
Cortes opted to play his second and third stringers in the first half that allowed USPF to engage in an exchange of baskets that saw UV leading only by a point in the first and second quarters.
As Cortes inserted his starters into the action, UV slowly built a slim lead at the third that ballooned into a double-digit margin as the Lancers used a full court trap that held the Panthers to just 13 points in the third period. The Lancers scored 29 points in the final quarter.
UV's imposing height and size advantage explained its authoritative control at the boards by outrebouding the Panthers by 26 rebounds, 60-34.
Jayson Balabag topscored for UV with 15 points, Jerome Napao added 13, Albina finished with 12, Monic Soliva scored 11 and Joshue Segumpan scattered 10 points whilel Gilberto Sastrillas was the only USPF player to score in doubledigit with 14 points.