Mobil grinds out win against Ol’Aces

Mobil defeated Ol’Aces, 78-73, in a very physical battle for the fifth seed in the Garapan Basketball League-IT&E Cup single-elimination wild card playoffs Monday night at the Garapan Basketball Court.

The win allowed Mobil to finish the eliminations with a win-loss record above .500 at 4-3. Ol’Aces, meanwhile, fell to a slate of 3-4.

The Mobil-Ol’Aces tiff was a continuation of their rained-out match.

Ol’Aces buried a handful of free throws in the opening 10 minutes and came away with a 21-18 lead after the opening quarter.

Mobil started slow, but its defense came alive in the second quarter and a pair of timely 3-pointers helped the team press ahead, 36-33, at halftime.

Ol’Aces’ Tony Diaz then heated up after the break, scoring nine points in the third quarter.

Mobil fortunately drained a trio of long balls to maintain a 57-52 margin heading into payoff period.

Ol’Aces would not go away easily, but Mobil’s Jun Estolas turned it on in the clutch, as usual, and mustered 13 points in the fourth quarter, including four pressure-packed free throws in the final minutes that sealed the deal.

Estolas led Mobil with 22 points in the game, while Ol’Aces’ Freddie Pelisamen led all scorers with 27.

After the game Pelisamen allegedly started an altercation with referee Noel Delos Santos in the parking lot.

“There was an unfortunate incident between our official (Delos Santos) and (Pelisamen) after the game. While (Pelisamen’s) car was about to leave the parking lot, he exited from the driver’s seat and approached Delos Santos who was standing with a group of players. Then (Pelisamen) punched (Delos Santos) twice in the chest,” according to a statement from league director Rey Perez,

Perez also said that Pelisamen performed the act for no reason and that league officials quickly alleviated the situation and had Pelisamen leave the premises.

As a result, league organizers decided to suspend Pelisamen for two whole seasons, effective Tuesday, Dec. 13, 2011.

“The GBL will not tolerate such acts. We require all of our players to adhere to our sportsmanship and safety principles listed specifically in our code of conduct,” said Perez.

Delos Santos was not punished because Perez was present during the incident and witnessed the altercation, after which he decided that his actions did not warrant any disciplinary action.

Ol’Aces, however, disagreed and is in the process of appealing GBL’s decision.

The team’s coach, Elias Rangamar, and other team members were also present during the incident and the former claimed that Delos Santos instigated the fight with words and hand gestures.

Rangamar said the team does not agree with the league’s decision not to also discipline the referee. He also said GBL’s code of conduct does not make any sense.

The next season is set to take place from April to June 2012. As of now, Pelisamen will be eligible after conclusion of the second leg of the series.

[B]Mobil 78 [/B]– Estolas 22, Fernando 14, Demapan 11, Sharry 8, Maratita 7, Lizama 7, Ruluked 5, De Guzman 4.

[B]Ol’Aces 73[/B] – Pelisamen 27, T. Diaz 22, Olaitiman 7, Clayton 6, Z. Diaz 4, Camacho 4, Iginoef 1.
[B] Scoring by quarters:[/B] 18-21, 36-33, 57-52, 78-73.