MDX outlasts SCS in overtime

MDX kept its perfect record intact after surviving SCS Heavy Equipment in overtime, 65-57, during the lone game in the 2011 DLX Basketball Invitational Friendship League last Monday night at the Gillette Multipurpose Gymnasium.

MDX improved to a 5-0 mark for solo first place in the nine-team field, while SCS absorbed its first loss in four matches. The MDX-SCS tiff was the only game played last Monday night, as 8th Division was awarded a win via forfeit over Saipan Boys in the first match.

In the second game, Dexter Tenorio canned the equalizer and MDX took advantage of a depleted SCS crew in overtime to eke out the eight-point win.

Tenorio drilled a banked shot from the left wing off a kickoff pass from Ben Lisua to tie the match, 55-all, .03 of a second left in regulation. SCS had the inbound from the backcourt and did not have enough time to pull up for a decent shot, sending the game into overtime.

In the extra five minutes of the match, SCS had a handicap, playing with only four players—Gilbert Miranda, Rocyl Ritual, Ferdie Tobias and Ed Echavez. Jun Pantaleon left the floor at the end of the regulation after his left eye was accidental poked by MDX’s Alex Lauron in a loose ball play in the closing seconds of the fourth quarter. Earlier in the fourth quarter, SCS, which showed up for the match with only six players, had already lost Jessie Mina due to five fouls.

With limited options on offense and a hole on defense, SCS was held to only two free throws in overtime and allowed MDX to score 10 easy points, four of them coming off fastbreak plays.

SCS had a chance to win the game in regulation when it led by four, 54-50, going into the final two minutes left. However, MDX moved within one, 53-54, after Zack Babauta split his charities and Lauron went 2-for-2 in the ensuing plays, while Tobias muffed two technical free throws and SCS failed to cash in on its attempts and lost the ball twice.

With the time down to less than 10 seconds, MDX gambled on giving up a foul on Miranda to stop the clock. The ploy paid off as Miranda had a split, giving SCS a precarious two-point lead, 55-53, 7.1 ticks to go in regulation.

MDX sued for time and when the game resumed, Ben Lisua received the inbound pass from Lauron and the former drove toward the right baseline. Lisua was then clobbered by SCS defenders and decided to kick out the leather to a cutting Tenorio, who pulled up for a 10-footer and banked it in. The game-tying basket was only Tenorio’s second field goal of the night.

Lauron top-scored for MDX with 26 points, making six of them in the opening quarter to lift his team to a 17-6 advantage. SCS wiped out the lead in the second period and forced a deadlock at halftime, 30-30, after outgunning MDX, 24-13, off the combined 18 points of Miranda and Ritual.

SCS then grabbed the upper hand in the third, 35-30, after MDX went scoreless in the first four minutes of the second half. MDX then launched an 8-0 run to regain the lead, but SCS answered with an 8-1 windup to retake the driver’s seat at the end of that canto, 43-39. SCS managed to keep the lead in the closing minutes until Tenorio’s crucial shot sent the game into overtime and the former eventually lost the match due to lack of manpower.