Vinta Victors turned back Los Timog Ballers, 82-77 in the opening game at the EJG Lucky Gym in Paranaque last Saturday, January 28. Dan De Guzman notched 15 points and 7 rebounds while Dante Denosta contributed 14 and 8 off the bench.
The Victors came out firing, reaching a 48 percent field goal percentage while also limiting their opponent to just 34 percent shooting. For Los Timog, Marwin Montejo did his best with 28 points, but it was not enough to help his team earn the victory.
SSBC meanwhile handed Don Bosco 07 an 82-50 beating. Julius Jose had a phenomenal all-around performance as he logged in a quadruple-double. He had 21 points, 16 rebounds, 10 assists and 10 steals. Don Bosco simply had no answers right from the get-go as they even surrendered a 20-6 opening quarter.
From one rout to the next, Tunesquad likewise proved superior to the Bullets as they won easily, 82-58. Fort Galicia and Ryan Rueda combined for 39 points for Tunesquad. The Bullet’s Maui Onofre tallied 15 points and 3 rebounds, but his team simply did not deliver against the Tunesquad.
Rebounding was one of the key stats for Tunesquad. They were dominant on the glass, pulling down 63 rebounds while the Bullets only managed to get 46.
Wrapping up the Recreational Division is a duel between Schoolmate and Footsteps Hauz. April Manuel’s 24 points and 8 assists powered Schoolmate to a 94-88 win.
With a minute left in the game and Schoolmate just up by six points, Footsteps Hauz still had a chance. Unfortunately, Jonas Javier missed a shot. On the other end, Schoolmate was able to capitalize on the missed opportunity with Dalton Balidoy converting, pushing his team’s lead to eight, 93-85.
