Wong wins debut in Diaz youth caging

Wong’s Sean Apasan tries to drop the ball to his teammates as two Kanaka 4 players hound him during the fourth quarter of their U15 game in the Diaz youth caging last Saturday at the Gilbert C. Ada Gymnasium. (Roselyn B. Monroyo)

Wong had a rousing debut in the U15 division of the Inaugural Frank M. Diaz Memorial Youth League following a 37-20 victory over Kanaka 4 last Saturday at the Gilbert C. Ada Gymnasium.

Greg Deleon Guerrero led Wong’s win after scoring 12 points. Six other Wong players hit the board in the team’s first game in the league named after the former Rotary head and an ardent basketball supporter and sanctioned by Mariana Islands Basketball Federation.

Deleon Guerrero opened Wong’s offense with his back-to-back baskets and the rest of his teammates stepped in for the easy win. Wong players showed better fundamentals than Kanaka 4, which was obviously lost in its debut in an organized league.

Kanaka 4 struggled too much that it made only 4 points after three quarters before it started collecting garbage points in the fourth with Wong relaxing a bit on defense.

Lysander Chuweiluk paced with his 6 points.

Meanwhile, the youth league opened last Friday with a pair of U18 matches.

In the first game, Rollers Blue edged the Ol’Aces 1, 59-55, while in the second match, the Ol’Aces 2 posted a similar close win versus Rollers 57, 55.

Tray Ngirarois, Albert Atan, and Rikko Saralu teamed up in giving the Ol’Aces a 2-point win after combining for more than half of the squad’s total output. Ngirarois had a team-high 18 points and scored 3 of the Ol’Aces 2’s last 6 markers, while Atan and Saralu chipped in 16 and 13, respectively, and drilled the squad’s 3 other points in the homestretch.

It was a come-from-behind victory for the Ol’Aces as they faced a 3-17 deficit at the end of the first period before Ngirarois and company overhauled Rollers’ lead and stole the win.

Chioni Dela Cruz top-scored for Rollers with his 10 markers.

In the other 18U match, Rollers Blue leaned on Christian Arceo at crunch time to slip past the Ol’Aces 1. Arceo knocked in 10 of his 12 points in the second half, including 4 straight markers in the closing minutes of the game.

Before Arceo hit his target in the second half, the Ol’Aces banked on Aaron Ogumoro in the opening half to keep up with the Ol’Aces. Ogumoro went on to lead all scorers with his 19 points, while June Alipio backed him up, adding 13. Ogumoro and Alipio made one free throw each after Arceo’s string of 4 markers to seal the win for Rollers Blue.

U15 DIVISION
Wong 37— Deleon Guerrero 12, Junior 8, Ferrari 4, Siren 4, Apasan 4, Mungwaath 3, Abejo 2.
Kanaka 4 20 — Chuweiluk 6, Taro 4, Stanley 4, Jose 4, Larsan 2.

U18 DIVISION
First Game
Rollers Blue 59— Ogumoro 19, Alipio 13, Arceo 12, Tengco 4, Agulto 4, Cobacha 2, Rabauliman 2.
Ol’Aces 1 55— Atalig 12, Castillo 12, Sablan 9, Atan 8, Borja 6, Snech 6.

Second Game
Ol’Aces 2 57— Ngirarois 18, Atan 16, Saralu 13, Pangelinan 5, Ferrera 5,
Rollers 55— Dela Cruz 10, Cruz 8, Hudkins 8, Ong 6, Kisa 6, Factor 5, Ichihara 5, Quiroz 2, Valencia 2.