Davao Occidental-Cocolife and San Juan-Go For Gold bested their rivals Wednesday to barge into the semifinals of the FilBasket Subic Championship at the Subic gym.
The Tigers edged Burlington EOG Sports, 88-81, while the Knights trounced Medical Depot, 88-73, to bolster their respective title bids.
Enjoying twice-to-beat quarters privileges, the victories were also redemption of sorts for Davao and San Juan after losing their elimination-round matches to the same foes.
Davao yielded to Burlington, 76-69, last Nov. 10, while San Juan bowed to Medical Depot, 69-67, last Nov. 3.
John Wilson starred for the Tigers by finishing with 23 points and eight rebounds, while help also came from Keith Agovida and Robby Celiz, who chipped in 11 and 10 points, respectively.
Skipper Billy Ray Robles took charge in the paint with 14 boards.
Davao actually trailed 70-65 after three quarters until the Tigers silenced Burlington in the first four minutes of the fourth period.
Robles sparked a 12-0 run in that stretch to give Davao the 77-70 upperhand that set the tone of the game for good.
Jhon Nermal finished with a double-double performance of 12 points and 10 boards, while James Castro had 16 points, eight rebounds and four assists, but their efforts fo r Burlington went futile.
Meanwhile, Alvin Abundo sizzled with 28 points built on four triples while dishing off 10 assists for San Juan.
The Knights imposed their assault for most parts of the game, leading by as many as 22 points, 83-61, in the final 3:44 following an Orlan Wamar trey.
Rhenz Abando also paced San Juan with 18 points, while Wamar added 11.
Patrick Cabahug and Kevin Villafranca scored 22 and 15 points for Medical Depot, but their efforts were not enough to douse San Juan’s fire.