WITH all the seeding in place in the Bud Light Golden Hoops Classic 2012 Fall Tournament, teams are putting forth their best efforts as double-elimination playoff action has begun.
On Wednesday night, several games scheduled in the 18-plus men’s varsity division provided everyone in attendance with some exciting and intense action. In the nightcap, the 7th-seeded Team IX squared-off against 8th-seeded Sixers Club. The two teams previously met during pool play a week ago with the Sixers playing short-handed.
Knowing the importance of the playoffs, both teams came with a full squad and ready to lay it all out on the court. However, at the end of the game only one team could walk away victors and remain in the winner’s bracket, while the other would drop. When the buzzer sounded it was Team IX who clinched a win after outscoring the Sixers 64-57.
Despite maintaining a lead almost the entire game, Team IX was put in check with only two minutes left in the game. The Sixers turned to the duo of Vince Espinal Jr. and Stefan Whitehurst to get back into the game. Espinal and Whitehurst sank buckets to give their team a three-point (57-54) lead.
With the game clock continuing to tick away, Team IX remained composed and buckled down while making a move. Team IX turned to veteran player Fred Peters who dropped six points from the paint to “seal the deal” for his team. The win advances Team IX in the playoffs and they will take on the 2nd-seeded Tamuning Typhoons.
Peters led Team IX scoring 21 points, while teammate Nilo Colitoy added 15 points. In the losing effort, Whitehurst scored a game-high 23 points and teammate Espinal added 22.
Other results
- Malesso Rebels 64, Legacy Club 54: Rebels’ Jordan Chargualaf scored 19 points and Jermain Perez scored 17 points. Legacy’s Rodrigo Grande Jr. scored a game high 30 points in the loss.
- Four Stars 94, SPPC 76 Club 57: Four Stars’ JackyJoe Rudolph scored 22 points and Jayme Saperna scored 20 points. SPPC’s Aris Santiago scored 33 points.
- Inarajan Hawks 93, GWC 58: Hawks’ Javis Duenas and Joshua Flores scored 17 points apiece followed by Gerald Paulino with 16 points and Michael Borja with 14 points. GWC’s Rey Sablan scored 25 points and Jeff Sablan scored 15 points.
Golden Hoops playoffs action resumes later tonight with three games on schedule. The opening game of the night will pit Team Heineken taking on the Malesso Rebels at 6:30 p.m. In the second game of the evening, the Andersen Defenders and Inarajan Hawks will battle one another. The nightcap will feature Bank of Guam taking on Four Stars at 8:30 p.m.
