Enforcers, NMC put up convincing wins

The Department of Public Safety Enforcers and Northern Marianas College Proa both notched their second win in three games as action in the 2006 Inter-Government Basketball League continued Wednesday night at the Gilbert C. Ada Gymnasium.

In the opener, DPS bounced back from their nail-biting overtime loss to Department of Labor with an easy 96-64 victory over Customs.

DPS wasted no time in getting the advantage and leaned on Oscar Sablan’s 10 points to streak to a 23-9 lead after the first period.

Customs came firing back in the second period and cut their deficit to eight points as Nathan Torwal found his stroke and nailed a couple of bombs from downtown, while Ray Lizama added another, helping the team close the half within striking distance, 32-40.

The distance, however, was stretched back to a comfortable margin for DPS as the Enforcers got back to their dominating ways and outscored their opponents, 27-14, with veteran forward Peter Camacho continuing his strong comeback run by swooshing the net for seven points.

Guard Joe Ito picked up where Camacho left off and pumped in 11 points in the final 10 minutes of the game, which featured DPS drilling another 29 points.

Sablan and Ito finished with 21 and 19 points to lead DPS, while Camacho and Elias Saralu pumped in 16 points apiece. Ben Peliseman also had 12 points.

Torwal led all scorers with 22 points after nailing six triples, while Lizama supported him with 16 points.

In the second game, Proa punched in a solid third quarter performance and held on to beat Office of the Public Auditor, 78-62.

The two teams matched each other well in the first half, with OPA holding a two-point lead after the first period, 19-17, and Proa tying the score just before halftime, 34-34.

Proa then got off to a hot start in the third quarter as Jester Garcia heated up for 10 straight points that ignited a 28-11 run, turning the tied ballgame into a 17-point lead for NMC, 62-45.

Proa cooled off but not enough to let OPA pull a comeback.

Garcia and Rufino Aguon led Proa with 15 points, with Aguon hitting five triples. Kevin Aldan and Oscar Masga chipped in 11 and 10 points, respectively.

Chris Camacho and Jeff Quitugua paced OPA with 19 and 18 points, while Dave Camacho added 13 points.

First Game
DPS 96 – Sablan 21, Ito 19, Saralu 16, Camacho 16, Pelisamen 12, Taitano 8, Kapileo 2, Celes 2.
Customs 64 – Torwal 22, R. Lizama 16, Reyes 4, Masaharu 4, Sablan 4, D. Lizama 4, Fejeran 2, Pangelinan 2, Iguel 2, Santos 2, Arroyo 2.
Scoring by quarters: 23-9, 40-32, 67-46, 96-64.
Referees: Dado Vistal and Noel Delos Santos.

Second Game
NMC 78 – Garcia 15, Aguon 15, Aldan 11, Masga 10, Castro 6, MacDuff 5, John 5, Attao 4, Satur 3, Manglona 2, Ierome 2.
OPA 62 – C. Camacho 19, Quitugua 18, D. Camacho 13, Torres 4, Sasamoto 4, Sanchez 3, Pangelinan 1.
Scoring by quarters: 17-19, 34-34, 62-45, 78-62.
Referees: Mike White and Jess Pabula.