Toyota wins fourth straight, Hoops bounce back

Two-time defending champion Bud Light/Toyota Tundra notched its fourth straight win, while Bud Ice/Hoopaholics bounced back for its third win of the season as action in the 2005 Budweiser Cup BANMI Men’s Island-wide Basketball League continued Friday night at the Gilbert C. Ada Gymnasium.

In the curtain raiser, Toyota extended its win streak to four games after dropping its season opener with an 85-77 victory over sister-team O’Douls/Ol’Aces.

Toyota trailed after one period of play, 20-24, but recovered and outscored their young opponents, 23-16, in the second quarter to take a 43-40 lead into halftime. The team was playing with John Santos and Peter Camacho, two huge pieces of their championship puzzle the past two years.

Santos was playing in just his second game of the season, while Camacho made his debut after the two spent the first nine months of the year in Iraq.

Santos scored five points and Camacho had two in the opening half, while forward Romeo Iginoef led the way with 10 points.

Both teams had spurts of their own in the third period, however, by the time the buzzer sounded signifying the end of the quarter, the two had matched each other point for point and Toyota headed into the final stanza clinging to their three-point lead, 69-66.

The Ol’Aces got off to a slow start in the fourth and Toyota took advantage to pad their lead and sealed the deal on a triple by Taj Van Buren and two baskets in the paint by Abong Camacho.

Van Buren led Toyota with 22 points, while Iginoef and Abong Camacho supported him well with 17 and 16 points.

Rotary league player Jack Lizama led the Ol’Aces with a game-high 29 points, while Dan Barcinas and Luis Iguel contributed 14 and 12 points.

In the second game, Jason Amado and the Hoopaholics used a second-half explosion to keep Budweiser/Wells Fargo winless with a 69-48 victory.

Amado was on fire in the first half, scoring 11 points and helping his team rebound from a 14-15 first quarter deficit and tie the score at 24-24 at the break. For his part, Jack Palacios kept Wells Fargo in the game with eight points in the first and another four points in the second.

Wells Fargo, however, was not able to keep up with the Hoopsters, who held their opponents under the 10-point mark in the third stanza while throwing down 21 points, 10 courtesy of Amado, to swing the game into their favor, 45-33.

Jeremy Sablan and Mel Manibusan picked up where Amado left off as action resumed and each pumped in eight points in the final 10 minutes as Hoopaholics distanced themselves and strolled to their third win in four games.

Amado led all scorers with 21 points, while Sablan and Manibusan added 13 and 10 points for the Hoopaholics.

Ben Sablan and Palacios led Wells Fargo with 13 and 12 points.

First Game

Bud Light/Toyota 85—Van Buren 22, Iginoef 17, A. Camacho 16, Celes 8, Santos 7, P. Camacho 6, Renguul 4, Saralu 3, Peter 2.

O’Douls/Ol’Aces 77—Lizama 29, Barcinas 14, L. Iguel 12, Tagabuel 9, Seman 8, Dillay 5.

Scoring by quarters: 20-24, 43-40, 69-66, 85-77.

Referees: Dado Vistal and Noel Delos Santos.

Second Game

Bud Ice/Hoopaholics 69—Amado 21, Sablan 13, Manibusan 10, Villacrusis 9, Mendiola 6, Garcia 4, Diaz 4, Awes 2.

Budweiser/Wells Fargo 48—Sablan 13, Ja. Palacios 12, G. Palacios 6, G. Palacios 6, Andrew 5, Villacrusis 4, Jo. Palacios 2.

Scoring by quarters: 14-15, 24-24, 45-33, 69-48.

Referees: Arnold Mesa and Jess Pacheco.