KB Market eases past Hoops in finals

KB Market dominated the Hoopaholics in the second half to earn a lopsided finals win, 77-49, in the 2013 UFO-Budweiser Open Division Basketball League last Saturday night at the Gillette Multipurpose Gymnasium.

KB Market held the Hoopaholics to 4 points in the first nine minutes of the third quarter and then went for the jugular in the opening minutes of the fourth period to bag the championship.

Before folding up, the Hoopaholics managed to take a 31-30 lead in a closely fought first half behind the buzzer-beating triple of Mel Manibusan.

The Hoops’ shaky lead was quickly wiped out in the third quarter with Elmer Esdrelon banking a jumper and KB Market went on to outgun its foe, 14-4, in the first nine minutes of the second half. Six different players scored for KB Market in that rally, while only Fred Litulumar and Maverick Itibus hit baskets for the Hoops.

KB Market was threatening to pull away with its 44-35 advantage before a triple from Dexter Tenorio resuscitated the Hoops’ dying offense. An undergoal stab from Kelvin Fitial moved the Hoops within 4, but KB Market closed out the quarter with a 5-point swing to enter the fourth with a 49-40 advantage.

In the fourth period, KB Market’s single-digit spread instantly ballooned to 20, 60-40, as Leo Galarse and Ivan Devero teamed up in a pivotal 11-0 run in less than two minutes. Galarse started the killer blows with an and-1 play before making another fastbreak layup, while Devero also scored three breakaway baskets, giving KB Market its biggest lead at the 8:06 mark of the fourth canto.

Galarse and Devero managed to escape with successive fastbreak layups, as KB Market blocked the Hoopaholics’ passing lanes, forcing the latter to either lose possession or pull up for hurried shots. Down by a big margin, the Hoops pressed the panic button, but failed to regroup in the remaining minutes of the game, as its motion offense did not work well with KB Market’s tough defense.

The Hoops moved the ball around right at the start of the finale and while the game plan seemed to work in the first half, it backfired in the second, as KB Market was quick on rotating on defense. The Hoops was too patient on its offense that no one was willing to gamble on pulling up for shots without a clear look at the basket.

The Hoops’ offense was so lackluster that only Kelvin Fitial drilled more than one field goal for the team in the second half. He had one field goal in the third and a layup and a triple in the fourth, while Itibus, Freddie Litulumar, Zack Babauta, Alex Lauron, and Tenorio had one field goal each. With most of its players off, the Hoops clearly missed wingman Ben Lisua, who was slapped with a one-game suspension for figuring in a fight during their controversial semis game against I Love Ladder Beach.

With Itibus out, only nine players suited up for the Hoops in the finals, while KB Market paraded a complete and much deeper 12-man roster. All KB Market players made it to the board with Galarse leading the team with his 16 points. Darwin Barbo added 14, while Brendon Talania chipped in 11.

Fitial paced the Hoopaholics with his 16 points, while Litulumar contributed 10, but had only 2 points in the second half.

[B]KB Market 77[/B] – Galarse 16, Barbo 14, Talania 11, Devero 9, Muleta 6, Manalo 4, Berline 4, Aquino 3, Esdrelon 4, De Dios 2, David 2, Guiab 2.

[B]Hoopaholics 49[/B] – Fitial 16, Litulimar 10, Itibus 7, Babauta 5, Lauron 5, Tenorio 3.

[B]Scoring by quarters[/B]: 16-8, 30-31, 49-40, 77-49.