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Mendoza, Velasco take MVP plums
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- Velasco
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- Mendoza
Mendoza bagged the most coveted individual award in the league for leading Ali’i to an unbeaten record (5-0) in the elimination round. He was one of the top scorers on squad and also did a steady quarterbacking job for the eventual champion, which downed I Love Saipan in the finals last Saturday, 74-65. Mendoza capped his season with a team-high 23 points in their title victory, including Ali’i’s last eight points.
Helping Mendoza lift Ali’i to victory in the finals was Velasco. The newcomer scored 16 points in the finale with his consecutive baskets in the second quarter allowing Ali’i to open a double-digit spead at halftime, 39-28. The workhorse also made an alley-oop shot in the fourth quarter that halted I Love Saipan’s rally in the closing minutes and teamed up with Ali’i big men in crashing the board against the much taller and heftier frontliners of their opponents.
Both Velasco and Mendoza received specially crafted trophies during the awards ceremony after the finals game last weekend. Mendoza went home with two individual awards, as he was also named to the Mythical Five, joining I Love Saipan’s Gyles Ruluked, Gwap Gang’s Shane Deleon Guerrero and Sean Rabasto, and Flip Top’s Jake Quitugua.
Deleon Guerrero and Rabasto towed Gwap Gang to a semis stint and also handed the team a perfect record (5-0) in Pool B of the league. In the semis, Gwap Gang bowed to Ali’i despite the double-figure scoring of Deleon Guerrero and Rabasto, who tallied 14 and 11 markers in the 68-74 loss.
Quitugua had only 10 markers in their 61-114 defeat at the hands of I Love Saipan for the battle for a finals berth, but was the hero of their 70-67 upset versus Gwap Gang, drilling the go-ahead free throws in the last 1.5 seconds of the match. He had 23 points in that close win and logged twin digits in four of their five victories in the elimination round.
Ruluked had a game-high 26 markers in the finals, keeping I Love Saipan in the match with his inside baskets. He combined for 18 points in the first two games in the semifinals.
