KUWAIT CITY, Feb 6:Fans were treated to some real volleyball and basketball matches at the Bayan Bilingual School in Jabriya, Friday in the ongoing 19th Filipino Basketball League (FBL) and 4th Filipino Men’s Volleyball League (FMVL) Goodwill Games Conferences.
In FBL, Movenpick proved that they could dish out more than handed out to them when they outplayed Wizara 87-74, while Al Essa overwhelmed Shonan 58-43, Holiday Inn thrashed Kaibigan Uno 72-54 and Papa John’s brushed aside Desert Fox 78-62.
There was only one game in FMVL and that saw defending champions Angel Eyes come out from their shells after losing the second set in the second round of the competition to outlast Maki in a seesaw battle 25-23, 23-25, 25-23 while Filipino Women’s Volleyball League matches were re- scheduled for next week.
FMVL
Angel Eyes vs Maki
Defending Champions Angel Eyes were back in form as they bounced back against Maki in the second encounter of the day to outlast them in a very close 3-set match 25-23, 23-25, 25-23.
The 1st set saw Angel Eyes open up with back to back spikes from #5 Joven and #7 Ghermie while Maki appeared to be warming up when they made a number of errors from the service area that saw Angel eyes lead 5-3 but it was not very long before Maki scored with solid back to back spikes from #3 Ella and a good over the net drop from #5 KC that put them level on 8-8 at one point.
Maki then acquired aces from Joey and a handful of spikes from #3 Ella and Joseph but the defending champions pressed on with another hard spike from #5 Joven and #7 Ghermie along with a drop shot from Dennis that had them again tied at 14-14. A good serve driven by Maki was replied through weak replies from their rivals that hit the ceiling a number of times and gave Maki the advantage but it was not very long when from the other side of the bench #5 Joven strongly blocked some of the spikes and #18 Marvin was at the right place at the right time to fire a number of spikes that saw both the teams tied once again at 19-19.
One of Angel Eyes good players #2 Oskie scored twice with his blocks while a number of outside spikes were taken by Maki that handed advantage to defending champions who took the initial set 25-23.
Maki had a rough start in the 2nd set when some of the spikes went out of the playing field one from #8 Gino which rolled over to the other side of the courts while their rivals hit a number of spikes through #3 Jerick and #18 Marvin to close up to 5-7 at one point.
Meanwhile, it seems that Angel Eyes fell short in their stunts and made a number of errors that brought the teams level on 9-9. One of Maki’s finest players #8 Gino then hit some drop shots to give his team a 13-12 lead but the ceiling also seemed to come in the way bring about another deadlock on 15-15.
The defending champions moved up a gear through #5 Joven, #18 Marvin and #3 Jerick while from the other side of the bench drop shots from #3 Ella and blocks from Joseph and KC gave them a handful of points but an early switching error saw them behind by a single point 21-22.
The tussle for supremacy continued and resulted in another deadlock on 23-23 but when one of Maki’s strongest members #3 completed a spike with blocks from KC and Joseph those points completed the 2nd set 25-23 in Maki’s favour and pushed the game into a 3rd deciding set.
On the other hand a real showdown of the winners gave everyone a real treat when both teams pushed up their efforts which resulted in a number of ties, first on 3-3 and then 7-7 but the thirst for victory provided Angel Eyes some inspiration to do better and they got some spikes from #18 Marvin while it seemed that the strong pressure gave Maki a number of points that resulted in a 5-point lead 14-9 lead for the defending champions.
Meanwhile, Maki called for a time out and came out with a game plan while from the other side of the courts results from their defense hit the ceiling on various occasions that saw their rivals close to 15-16.
Wearing jersey #18 Marvin from Angel Eyes use his wits and power once again to fire some aces that caught their rivals unaware and put them ahead by 3 points 18-15. But Maki proved that they were not an easy opponent when a good block from KC, and back to back solid spikes from Joey, Gino and Jerome saw two other deadlock at 20-20 and 22-22.
Maki got another drop shot from Ella that gave them another point while Angel Eyes got another hard spike from Joven while a couple of errors from Maki brought a 25-23 victory to Angel Eyes.
Angel Eyes’ #18 Marvin was named the Best Player of the Game.
Initial Standings
    GP    W    L
Boushahri    4    3    1
Rebellious Elfin    5    3    2
Maki    4    2    2
Angel Eyes    4    1    3
Triggers    1    0    1
FBL
Movenpick vs Wizara
Movenpick proved that they are one of the best teams this season when they kept their unbeaten record in five games including their victory against Wizara 87-74 points after staying in control of the match from the start to the finish.
The initial quarter saw Movenpick all warmed up when an opening long shot from #18 Marlon Enriquez stunned their rivals but Wizara showed some real class when #11 Ferdie Chaneco handed back to back 3-pointers while #8 Rino Villanueva retained a strong pulse to pull off three perfect shots from the 15-foot line.
However, Movenpick managed to gain access to the hoops more often with #21 and #18 Marlon Enriquez that saw them in control by 6 points 21-15 at one point.
Wizara tried as hard as they could to match their rivals as they got scores through #12 Mc Jaf along with another long shot from#11 Ferdie Chaneco but their rivals continued to accelerate the match and got a handful of points through #24, #14 Derrick Manalac and another three long shots from #18 Marlon Enriquez that extended their lead to 15 points 50-35 by the end of the 2nd quarter.
On the other hand, Movenpick gave a hard time to their opponents in the 3rd quarter when they put up a solid line of defense through #24 Jonald Go that stopped their opponents from getting an easy access to the hoops while some fine shots from the free throw line #11 Ferdie Chaneco added some points for Wizara but from the other side of the bench #69 Arnel Cerboles fired a long shot for Movenpick besides getting 10 points from #18 Marlon Enriquez that made saw pull away to 70-53 points at the end of the 3rd quarter.
Movenpick appeared more relaxed in the final quarter but the last 10 minutes of the ballgame were not sufficient for their rivals to catch Movenpick and they seemed to misplace their grip on the ball that gave Movenpick a 13-point 87-74 victory.
Best Player of the Game was #18 Marlon Enriquez of Movenpick.
Papa John’s vs Desert Fox
Papa John’s are comfortably seated in 2nd place with 5 wins in their 6 matches including their78-62 triumph on Friday against Desert Fox.
In the first quarter Papa John’s were all warmed as they got back to back 3-point shots through #4 Alfred Ceballos accompanied by handful of shots from #11 Jerry Ceballos while from the other side of the courts their rivals seemed to start off on a wrong foot and saw them behind by 11 points 10-21-10 at one point.
Meanwhile, Papa John’s did not give way to their rivals as they maintained a strong line of defense through #28 Jason Magallanes that gave #11 Jerry Masangkay an entry into the 3-point territory while #71 Jonathan Lago provided four shots as their opponents seemed to be having difficulty in catching up although they managed a number of points through #5 Junriel Soriano which were not sufficient and kept their rivals in control by 36-25 points at the end of the 1st half.
Desert Fox then put up a solid defense through #15 Gary Barrios that provided an opportunity to #16 Junrey Dicierto to get some of the points while #5 Junriel Soriano basketted a long shot. Papa John’s enthusiasm for victory was seen in their efforts and they collectively designed a good game plan that put them ahead by 20 points, 60-40 by the end of the 3rd quarter.
An unyielding defense was put up by Desert Fox through #44 Luie Acedera and #21 Marvin Bantog that resulted in a long shot from #18 but Papa John’s proved that they were in full control from the free throw line as they never faltered to win by 16 points 78-62.
Holiday Inn vs Kaibigan Uno
Holiday Inn are tied with Fil-Am with 3 victories in their 4 games so far including this week’s 72-54 win against Kaibigan Uno.
It was early in the day when this one-sided match was witnessed by FBL supporters after Holiday Inn fired an early 3 point shot from #8 Atong apart from 6 other points he contributed along with some good shots from #11 Prats while their rivals proved that they were not an easy opponent as they penetrate the hoops through back to back shooting from #30 Duds Tenorio, #14 Villanueva and #12 Arnel Bustillo that put them close to 2 points 15-17 at the end of the 1st quarter.
Meanwhile, Holiday Inn soon realized that Kaibigan Uno can really play well that made them decide to firmly hold on to the ball and collect an astonishing 11 points from #8 Atong and although #12 Arnel Bustillo of Kaibigan Uno acquired 7 points, inclusive of a 3-pointer they were caught unawares and left behind by 8 points 24-32 by the end of the 2nd quarter.
In the 3rd quarter, Kaibigan put up a good show when back to back long shots were fired by #12 Arnel Bustillo who completed 14 points in the quarter alone but their rivals were never complacent at any point and carried on with strong line of defense backed by some fine shooting that kept ahead 50- 42-50.
Never at any point did Holiday Inn take things easy in the last quarter of the game and they pulled of three long shots- -2 from #9 Nique and #5 Guerrero that caught their rivals unawares as they carried on to win by 18 points 72-54 at the end of the game.
Holiday Inn’s #8 Atong Best was named Player of the Game.
Al Essa vs Shonan
Al Essa is one of the teams to register 4th best so far with 4 wins in 6 matches including their victory against Shonan by 58-43 points.
The initial quarter saw Shonan wearing their best shoes when they collected a long shot from #11 Nino Belarmino along with some fine shots from #5 Nino and #3 Mike Pangiligan that took their total to 17 points while the other side of the bench seemed to be still warming up and collected only 11 points.
Shonan carried on with the same level of shooting through #6 Benjie Dagle and #5 Nino while their opponents were still a bit low in their performance and got only 12 points that kept Shonan in control by 5 points 28-23 by the end of the 2nd quarter.
Al Essa switched to a higher level of their performance and combined their efforts with a tight defense through #6 Vince Pimentel and #13 Dennis Toquero that denied their opponents very little access to the hoops while the combined shots of #12 Marvin Lompero and a long shot from #8 Marvin Macaraeg turned the lead in their favor by 43-35 points at the end of the 3rd quarter.
Al Essa kept the momentum in the last 10 minutes of the ballgame while their rivals were unable to find a game plan to spin the match in their favor and Al-Essa scored a 15-point 58-43 victory when the buzzer sounded.
Wearing Jersey #8 Marvin Macaraeg of Al Essa bagged the Best Player of the Game award.
Initial Standings
    GP    W    L
Movenpick    5    5    0
Papa John’s    6    5    1
Maidan    4    4    0
Al Essa    6    4    2
Fil-Am    4    3    1
Holiday Inn    4    3    1
Triggers    4    2    2
Desert Fox    7    2    5
Kaibigan Uno    7    2    5
Shonan    3    1    2
Metal Center    5    1    4
Shrimpy    1    0    1
Wizara    5    0    5
Sahara    6    0    6
FBL, FMVL and FWVL organizers would like to thank their sponsors Caroll Ong from Metrobank Super Bilis Padala and Red Bull Energy Drink for supporting their events.