Rollers 3 gains share of lead

Rollers 3 drew a solid game from Christian Morales to outclass Rollers 2, 64-53, in the boys division game in the 2013 Sun Palace Christmas Basketball Tournament last Saturday night at the Gillette Multipurpose Gymnasium.

With the victory, Rollers 3 now has a 3-1 record, sharing the top spot with Rollers 2.

Morales scored a game-high 23 points, as his guns went blazing in the first half. He nailed 6 of Rollers 3’s first 9 points and went on to finish the half with 17 to lift his team to a 25-22 lead. Morales canned two triples in the first half, matching Jun Fidelino’s mark. Rollers 2 got contributions from four more players to keep Rollers 3 within striking distance.

However, in the second half, Rollers 3 began widening the gap with Wilfredo Francisco and Jethro Cruz backing up Morales. Cruz, who was scoreless in the first half, converted three triples and added two free throws to his credit, while Francisco also dropped all his 13 markers in the second half.

As for Rollers 2, it drew only a pair of charities from Fidelino in the second half and had only Sam Darag providing some life to the team’s dying chances of keeping the solo lead. Darag scored 9 of his team-high 11 points in the second and clearly missed the support of some key players who either missed last weekend’s game or were off night. Rollers 2 was without Kobe Mendoza and failed to get contributions from Ted Vivero, Joel Subang, and Mike Cenir.

FTMP 53, Rollers 4 49
In the other boys division game, Funky Town Monkey Pimps gained its second straight win after thwarting Rollers 4.
With its 2-1 card, FTMP is now in a tie for second place with Rollers 1. Completing the field are Rollers 4 (1-2), Dream Team (0-2), and Rollers 5 (0-3).

Tristan Montes and Jason Lampkin teamed up in the victory, as they combined for 32 points. Montes scored 8 of FTMP’s last 12 points and made fastbreak layups that helped his team keep its distance against Rollers 4. Montes finished with a team-high 18 points, while Lampkin had 14, including 6 straight points that gave FTMP more cushion.

FTMP was only ahead by a hair, 35-34, off Ivan Sanarez’s drive when Lampkin hit three straight point-blanked shots for good measure.

Hula Girls 47, Wrecking Balls 43
In the girls division, Hula Girls closed out the first round of the double-round robin contest with a perfect record, following a 4-point win over Wrecking Balls.

Hula Girls took the solo spot with its 3-0 card, while Wrecking Balls (2-1) slid to second. Futball (1-2) and Tappers (0-3) rounded out the field.

Irish Pagarao anchored Hula Girls’ victory, drilling successive baskets in the homestretch. She made the team’s last 7 points to counter the string of baskets of Wrecking Balls’ Rachel Abrams. Abrams had 6 of her team’s final 8 markers.

Pagarao ended with a team-high 15 points and got enough help from two teammates, as Jan Travilla and Marie Javier chipped in 14 each. Abrams was the lone double figure scorer for Wrecking Balls with her 18, as the second-leading scorer on the squad—Lily Williams—was limited to 6 points.

First Game
FTMP 53 – Montes 18, Lampkin 14, Francisco 8, Sanarez 6, Omengkar 4, Dantic 2.
Rollers 4 49 – Kwon 19, Deocares 8, Santos 6, Toves 4, Sagun 4, Bucayo 4, Ellama 2.
Scoring by halves: 24-23, 53-49.

Second Game
Hula Girls 47 – Pagarao 15, Travilla 14, Javier 14, J. Palero 4.
Wrecking Balls 43 – Abrams 18, Williams 6, Reyes 5, Alegre 4, Lebria 4, Ito 3, Samson 2.
Scoring by halves: 22-20, 47-43.

Third Game
Rollers 3 54 – Morales 23, Francisco 13, Cruz 11, Rios 3, De Luna 2.
Rollers 2 43 – Darag 11, Espinosa 8, Mangalo 8, Capuyon 8, Fidelino 8.
Scoring by halves: 25-22, 54-43.