Ipil, Zamboanga Sibugay—After months of frustration, Basilan vented its ire on ALZA Alayon Zamboanga del Sur, 82-48, to open the 2021 Chooks-to-Go Pilipinas VisMin Super Cup Mindanao Leg, Wednesday at the Provincial Gymnasium here.
It was Basilan’s first game since their Game Two win in the 2020-21 Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League Lakan Division Finals back on March 20, 2020. Basilan changed its moniker from Steel to the Peace Riders in VisMin.
Leading by just eight heading into the second frame, 15-7, the Peace Riders’ offense all of a sudden caught fire while still maintaining their tough defense, outscoring ALZA Alayon 25-7 to enter halftime with a huge 40-14 margin.
“After nu’ng first quarter, sinabihan ko ‘yung players ko na huwag silang magmadali, focus lang (kaya nakalamang nang malaki),” said Peace Riders head coach Jerson Cabiltes.
The lead would eventually balloon to as high as 42, 78-36, on a Darwin Lunor deuce off a post move at the 4:23 mark of the payoff period.
Michael Mabulac stuffed the stat sheet for Basilan with 16 points, 11 rebounds, three assists, two steals, and a block. He also registered a game-best plus-32 rating.
Hesed Gabo was the spark off the bench for Basilan with 14 markers and seven boards while Chris Bitoon and Michael Juico chipped in 12 and 11 points, respectively.
The Peace Riders took advantage of their run-and-gun offense, putting up 22 fastbreak points while their counterparts only got two. Moreover, ALZA Alayon’s 22 turnovers led to 27 Basilan points.
Dan Sara was the lone Zamboanga Del Sur cager to tally double digits in points with 17.
All in all, Zamboanga del Sur shot just 27-percent from the field, including 3-of-22 from deep. In contrast, Basilan was a blistering 50-percent from the field.
The Peace Riders look to make it two in a row on Tuesday when they collide with Roxas at 3 pm, while ALZA Alayon aim for their first win on Friday against Iligan at 3 p.m.
The Scores:
Basilan 82 – Mabulac 16, Gabo 14, Bitoon 12, Juico 11, Lunor 6, Balucanag 6, Taganas 4, Uyloan 3, Collado 2, Manalang 2, Saliddin 2, Siruma 2, Baloria 2, Hallare 0, Tan 0.
Zamboanga del Sur 48 – Sara 17, Jabello 7, Raflores 7, Cabrilla 5, Tajonera 5, Celada 3, Puerto 2, Moneva 2, Amoquis 0, Biwang 0, Cruz 0, Daa 0, Labisores 0, Dela Cruz 0, Pepito 0.
Quarterscores: 15-7, 40-14, 61-31, 82-48.
