Blue Haus dislodges Wushin Express

 Blue Haus bumped off Wushin Express at the No. 2 spot in the team standings of the 2011 DLX Basketball Invitational Friendship League after an 80-72 victory in their game last Saturday at the Gualo Rai Basketball Court.

Blue Haus now has a 5-1 record, moving up to solo second place, while Wushin dropped to a 4-2 card for fourth spot in the nine-team field. MDX leads the league with a 7-0 record, while SCS Heavy Equipment Rental is ranked third with its 4-1 mark.

An 18-9 scoring in the first period was all Blue Haus needed to dominate Wushin and notch its fifth win. Blue Haus got off to a good start when it drew contributions from seven different players in the opening canto, while Wushin was held to only four field goals as it had only three players making it to the scoreboard.

Blue Haus picked up where it left off in the second frame, nailing 16 markers, while Wushin still failed to get its rhythm, as it was held to eight points. Again, Blue Haus’ balance offense was too much for Wushin, allowing the former to double the latter’s output by halftime, 34-17.

Brandon Talania, who was held to one triple in each of the first two quarters, had a breakout game in the third period, firing 11 points to maintain Blue Haus’ double-digit spread, 54-41.

After an anemic first half, Wushin finally broke into double figures in scoring in the third canto with its 24 markers, with 12 of them coming from Pete Lizama. However, Wushin failed to neutralize Talania in the third to face a 13-point deficit, with one quarter to go.

Wushin had his best offensive game in the fourth period when it exploded for 31 markers and Lizama continued to hit his marks. However, Marlon Sison and Jun Abedes hit rally halting baskets in the fourth canto to foil Wushin’s comeback bid.

Talania top-scored for Blue Haus with 20 points, while Abedes chipped in 17. Edwin Camacho and Marlon Sison contributed 11 and 10 markers, respectively. Only Lizama and Henry de Jesus tallied double digits for Wushin with 28 and 11, respectively. Wushin gunner Jun Tabora was limited to nine markers and was scoreless in the final canto.

The Wushin-Blue Haus tiff was the only game played last Sunday, as FGC (0-6) had only four players and forfeited its game against Sherwin Williams (3-2).

Only one match was played last Friday, too, with MDX keeping its perfect record after routing Pacific Postal Plus, 68-37. SCS won via forfeit over San Roque in the first game.

Blue Haus 80 – Talania 20, Abedes 17, E. Camacho 11, Sison 10, B. Camacho 8, Cruz 6, Fernandez 4, Olivos 3, Lazone 1.

Wushin Express 72 – Lizama 28, De Jesus 11, Tabora 9, Tibayan 9, Guiab 8, Patawaran 4, O. Ebuen 3.

Scoring by quarters: 18-9, 34-17, 54-41, 80-72.