PAMPANGA Best-ed the Fil Aust cagers, 63-51, to win the 2013 PCYC (Police-Citizens Youth Club) Marrickville Open Men’s basketball championship recently.
BM Express Miller trounced Hayahay, 59-50, for third place.
Fil Aust only started to take upper hand going into the last minutes of the first half, but the explosive moves of RJ Butacan, speedster Jerome Danganan and the versatile Marlon Mañas pulled Pampanga Best to a 30-25 half-time lead.
Fil Aust young guns Ricky Michael, Howard Yu and Louie Calauag hit their straps going toe-to-toe with the Pampanga Best quintet led by speedsters Jerome Danganan, Red Policarpio, RJ Butacan and Guliber Cortez.
The second half kicked off with Fil Aust’s A Malig, Calauag and Ricky Michael hitting their strides to offset the smothering defence to shut-out shooter Howard Yu and edge closer to Pampanga Best, 40-36.
But treys from Pampanga Best’s veteran Byron Murphy and inside incursions by Mañas, Butacan and Cortez held off the Fil Aust comeback going into the last minutes of the ball game.
Pampanga Best stalwarts Red Policarpio, Guliber Cortez and Jerome Danganan made sure their rotating defence stymied the style of Fil Aust smooth-shooting shooter Yu to prevent a rally with his long bombs.
That allows Pampanga Best to leave Fil Aust in its, winning, 63-51.
BM Express romped home, 59-50, against Hayahay in a well-contested games. JP de la Cruz 17 led the successful assault for BM Express, and Iverbon Liceralde top-scored for Hayahay.
In an opening exhibition, East All Stars scraped through Treskillion, 35-34.
