RT NMI Rollers withstands Ol’Aces’ rally

The RT Law NMI Rollers’ Irvin Villarin, 33, reaches in for the ball in this rebound play during their boys U15 division game against the Bruce Almighty Ol’Aces in the Diaz youth caging last Saturday at the Gilbert C. Ada Gymnasium. (Roselyn B. Monroyo)

The RT Law NMI Rollers survived the Bruce Almighty Ol’Aces comeback bid for 44-37 victory in their boys U15 division game in the 2018 Frank M. Diaz Memorial Youth League last Saturday at the Gilbert C. Ada Gymnasium.

Irvin Villarin made 6 of the NMI Rollers’ last 8 points to save the day for his team, which led 34-26, with over five minutes left in the match.

A short 7-0 scoring run off Devin Igisomar’s triple and Greg Deleon Guerrero and L.J. Reyes’ layups put the Ol’Aces back into the game, 33-34, before a reverse shot from Dillan Cruz halted the rally and gave the NMI Rollers distance, 36-33, with a little over a minute remaining in the duel.

The Ol’Aces then threatened the NMI Rollers’ anew, 35-36, after Deleon Guerrero hit another layup. However, the NMI Rollers’ got the 2 points back quickly when Villarin drove strong to the basket, drew a foul on R-son Menchor and knocked in the two pressure-packed free throws, 38-35, 39 seconds left in the match.

After Villarin’s pair of charities, the Ol’Aces sued for time and when the game resumed, Deleon Guerrero delivered a banked shot to keep his team in the game, 37-38. However, NMI Rollers countered right away with Villarin already on their frontcourt and received a long pass from one of his teammates for an uncontested layup that gave his squad more breathing room, 40-37.

Still down by 3 with no timeout left and the clock down to 19 seconds, the Ol’Aces were pressed to make a field goal to remain in contention. They made three attempts and missed all, while the NMI Rollers finally collared and the rebound and Villarin drilled a reverse layup at the buzzer to put icing on the cake.

Villarin finished with a team-high 13 points, while Deleon Guerrero led the Ol’Aces with his 14 markers.

The victory over the Ol’Aces allowed the NMI Rollers to bounce back from a loss to Saipan Vegas last Friday.

Saipan Vegas cruised to a 60-38 win after dominating the NMI Rollers right from the get-go.

Steve King scored 13 points in the first half to hand Saipan Vegas a double-digit lead at the break, 29-17. Donavin Deleon Guerrero also had a good start for Saipan Vegas, firing 8 points, 6 of them in streak.

Villarin tallied 7 consecutive points, too, in the first half, but was quiet in the latter part of that period. He then redeemed himself in the second half, recording 12 points, but failed to get help from his teammates, allowing Saipan Vegas to pull away further.

King was again at the forefront of the Saipan Vegas’ offense early in the second half, while Anthony Lazaro delivered the killer blows, logging the squad’s last 7 markers for their 22-point winning margin.

Friday Game
NMI Rollers 44 — VIllarin 13, Pangelinan 8, E. Castro 4, Cruz 4, Torres 4, Kapwich 4, Moriila 2, G. Castro 2, Salas 2, Factor 1.
Ol’Aces 37 — Deleon Guerrero 14, Menchor 8, Guerrero 3, Reyes 3, Igisomar 3, Saures 2, Kabiriel 2, Padayao 2.
Scoring by halves: 22-24, 44-37.

Thursday Game
Saipan Vegas 60 — King 22, Deleon Guerrero 12, Lazaro 7, Laniyo 6, Ichihara 6, Naraja 3, Mizutani 2, They 2.
NMI Rollers 38 — Villarin 19, Cruz 4, Pangelinan 4, Tudela 2, Kapwich 2, Manglona 2, Factor 1, Morilla 1.
Scoring by halves: 38-29, 60-38.