RC Calimag made his father proud yesterday as he led an initial attack that helped propel Batang Gilas to a 96-73 swamping of Indonesia at the Araneta Coliseum.
Sixteen-year-old Mclaude Guadana then joined Calimag with his all-around game in the third period and this contributed big to Batang Gilas’ second consecutive victory in the 2017 Seaba Under-16 basketball tournament
Calimag, whose father Ricky played for San Beda College during his college days and for many teams in the Philippine Basketball Association later, had 17 points.
This included nine crucial points in the first 10 minutes of the game, highlighted by a jumper and a triple in the last 7:41 of the opening period that touched off a 9-0 run.
His back-to-back hits midway in the first period then led to an 11-0 blast, and Batang Gilas went on to grab a 33-17 edge at the start of the second period.
“We played with intensity in the first two quarters. Then, we lost it in the third. Fortunately, we got it back in the last quarter,” said Batang Gilas coach Michael Oliver.
Guadana, a prized find from the Lyceum Junior Pirates, struck hard in a 13-3 run, his barreling moves allowing Batang Gilas to move further away, 66-33, with 6:11 left.
Gaudana finished the game with a triple-double of a game-high 19 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists.
Promising 6’11” slotman, 15-year-old Kai Sotto shot 12 points, hauled seven boards and had two blocks for Batang Gilas.
Felix Alexander connected with 18 for Indonesia.
In another U-16 game, Malaysia, behind Wong Thiam Mun with 24 points, clobbered Thailand, 74-62, to keep up with Batang Gilas.
In the men’s tournament, Dasom Wutipong shot a game-high 40 points and hauled in 11 rebounds for Thailand as it walloped Myanmar, 102-35.
This enabled the Thais to bounce back from their loss to Indonesia with their third win in four outings.