Alcantara—MJAS Zenith-Talisay City won its sixth game in a row—a 97-65 mauling of Tubigon Bohol to open the second round of the Chooks-to-Go Pilipinas VisMin Super Cup, Thursday at the Civic Center here in Cebu.
The Aquastars got off to a sluggish start and at one point, even trailed by 11, 24-35, in the second period.
However, it was a completely different story in the second half as Talisay City rode the hot hands of Val Acuña and Jaymar Gimpayan in an 11-0 run at the start of the third that vaulted them to a 48-41 lead.
Patrick Jan Cabahug, Egie Boy Mojica, Shane Menina, and Kevin Villafranca all joined the scoring parade during that crucial stretch that helped Talisay build a 66-47 lead heading to the fourth. The final canto was merely a formality as the Aquastars’ reserves poured it on to complete the 32-point rout.
“Yes, we’re very concerned with our slow starts. I think two games na ‘to,” said Cabahug who’s in the running for the tournament’s MVP plum. “So Coach [Aldrin Morante] told us not to be overconfident because it’s what’s causing us to start slow. He reminded us that all the teams here are capable of beating us.”
All in all, Talisay outscored Bohol, 59-24, in the second half.
It was an almost identical rout to the two teams’ first meeting that saw MJAS take a 105-66 win last April 9.
Talisay City now owns a perfect 6-0 mark while Bohol remains winless so far in this competition.
Acuña led the Aquastars with 14 points built on four three-pointers while Cabahug also made three triples to finish with 13 markers.
Gimpayan had 13 points, seven rebounds, and two blocks.
Talisay City’s frontcourt also did a lot of damage as center Jhaymo Eguilos added 11 points, six boards, and two blocks while Villafranca, a power forward from the University of San Jose-Recoletos, had his best game of the tournament so far with nine points, nine rebounds, two assists, and two steals.
Jonathan Ibarra was Bohol’s high-point man with 16 while Joseph Marquez had 14 points and eight rebounds. Pari Llagas chipped in 13 points and 10 boards.
MJAS-Talisay plays its third game in four days tomorrow when it faces Tabogon at 3:00PM. Tubigon Bohol, on the other hand, takes on the same team on Saturday at 3:00PM.
The Scores:
Talisay (97)—Acuña 14, Gimpayan 13, Cabahug 13, Eguilos 11, Villafranca 9, dela Cerna 7, Menina 5, Mojica 5, Moralde 4, Santos 4, Casajeros 4, Hubalde 2, Ugsang 2, Cuyos 2, Jamon 2
Bohol (65)—Ibarra 16, Marquez 14, Llagas 13, Musngi 8, Dadjijul 6, Tilos 4, Cabizares 2, Casera 2, Leonida 0.
Quarterscores: 18-20, 38-41, 66-47, 97-65