KUWAIT CITY, Aug 14: Non-stop action was the name of the game once again as basketball fanatics were provided a treat at the Bayan Bilingual School in Jabriya, Friday in the 20th Open Category Goodwill Games Conference. Triggers were made to sweat to edge the good team of Malena 74-73 while CLR achieved their first victory of the tournament when they overwhelmed Tropaks 104-82 and Heritage maintained their unbeaten run when they hammered Russel 71-58. Meanwhile, in the 2nd Inter-Company B-Cielos kept a hold on the driver’s seat when they outlasted N-Dash 74-70 while Hilton Kuwait Resort edged Wizara 62-58. These quality ballgames were officiated by Filipino Basketball League (FBL)-Basketball Association of the Philippines (BAP) headed by Commissioner Demos Arienda and his committed group of office-bearers who consistently delivered fair judgment in all the matches. These included James Miranda and Victoria Apostol — Time and Score Keeper, BAP Referees—Ferdie Tadena, Aries Buenaventura, George Panganiban, Toots Apostol, Baylon Tenorio and Joel Acuna FBL President.

Open Category
Triggers vs Malena
Triggers were put to a real test when they fought for every point to edge Malena in overtime 74-73.
In the 1st quarter Triggers were all warmed up as they scored 18 points through #21 Darwin Nunez and a long shot through #17 Bon-Bon Magallanes while from the other side of the bench #11 Rommel Lajun had an answer to those long shots but it appears that they were still warming up by the end of the quarter as they were left behind by 5 points 13-18.
The 2nd quarter witnessed Triggers in top form as they put in their best performance.They got another 3 point basket from #17 Bon-Bon Magallanes and a number of shots from #3 Joie Talaba while Malena penetrated the rival defense as number of times to find the hoops with most points from #6 Mae Mariano but Triggers refused to take their foot off the accelerator.
Malena tried hard to get back into the game but try as hard as they would they could not do much damage for they continued to fall short and they were kept behind by 10 points 27-37 at the end of the 1st half.

Malena by now had got a measure of their opponents as they realized that Triggers were not an easy opponent and erected a solid line of defense that put a break on Triggers efforts as they were stuck on 45 points.Malena’s strong defense was accompanied by consistent baskets from #7 Rey Panes and #30 Jun Ninon that brought both the teams on level on 45-45 at one point.However, with a foul on the line before the 3rd quarter was over saw one of Triggers finest members #21 Darwin Nunez making sure of scoring two shots from the free throw line to keep Triggers ahead 47-45 at end of the third quarter.
Loud cheers were heard inside the arena when Triggers opened up a long shot through #01 Ryan Dunca along with number of points from #00 Benjie Garabel and #02 Noli Diez but Malena fought back to on level with them through 3-point shots from #30 Jhun Ninon and #3 Rommel Navalta that resulted in a seesaw battle that eventually resulted in a deadlock on 64-64 when the final buzzer sounded to push the match into overtime.

Both teams showed amazing enthusiasm but Malena missed one of their best man in the form of #5 Paul Dumdum when he was fouled out while Triggers’ finest member #00 Benjie Garabel also suffered the same fate that kept both the teams on an equal footing.
Triggers made sure of being perfect from the 15-foot line and same was the case with their opponents who were leading as the game neared its end as seemed to have victory sealed but fate decided to side with Triggers as a buzzer-beater shot driven by #01 Ryan Dunca found the basket and gave them a single-point 74-73 victory.
Wearing Jersey #21 Darwin Nunez from Triggers was given the Best Player of the Game award.

Heritage vs Russel
Later that day, Heritage maintained their unbeaten run in 3 matches as they showed a lot of power against Russel to win by 71-58 points.
The initial quarter saw both team still warming up but Heritage repeatedly found the basket to score 14 points mostly through #29 Don Dwiggins and the “Small but Terrible” #2 Jeff Espadero while from the other side of the court #1 Gilbert Aragones got most points to keep his team in the match as Heritage led by 14- 13 points at the end of the quarter.
Meanwhile, Heritage showed what they could do and seemed to be a different side in the 2nd quarter as they displayed a lot of stamina and established a solid line of defense through #10 Ronal Saupan while attacking the rival basket through a number of shots from #7 Jovel Serdena, #4 Ferd Manzano along with a 3-point shot from #33 Marlon Enriquez that took them way ahead of Russel to lead by 12 points 34-22 by the end of the 1st half.

In the 3rd quarter, Russel tried as hard as they could to match their rivals with some good shots from #5 Macoy Bertillo and #15 Allan Mendiola but their efforts seemed short as Heritage maintained their attack with shots through #7 Jovel Serdena and #17 Erman Maglantay that gave them a 15 point 53-38 lead at the end of the 3rd quarter.
In the last 10 minutes, Russel opened up long shots through #18 Kerby dela Rosa along with fine shots from #1 Gilbert Aragones but their rivals appeared to be very confident with their lead and seemed to be “wasting time” through a lot of ball possession although they kept the scoreboard moving through a number of shots from #29 Don Dwiggins, including a long shot, that gave them another victory, this time by 13 points to finish the match 71-58.
The Best Player of the Game award was given to #7 Jovel Serdena of Heritage team.

CLR vs Tropaks
In the last game that took place CLR managed to score their first victory of the tournament when a number of new faces were lined up to play for them but they proved that they were not new to the game as they overpowered newcomers Tropaks 104-82.
The first quarter witnessed CLR wearing their best shoes when they managed to get some outstanding shots from #12 Romy Navarro and #6 Jason Guevarra while from the other side of the bench Tropaks managed to fire four back to back long shots, two from #o2 Rodiemel Yap, and one each from #5 Marvin Macaraig and #1 Allan Rick Faustino but they still came out short as CLR led 30-19 at the end of the quarter.
In the next quarter CLR never let their foot off the accelerator and collected a number of shots through #19 James Carillo and #12 Romy Navarro while one of Tropaks finest members #02 Rodiemel Yap got a number of rebounds and at the same time made sure that he put all the shots in the basket including two more 3-pointers that gave his team 19 points in the second quarter alone but they were still behind by 6 points 39-45 at the end of the 1st half.

Tropaks tried as hard as they can to match their opponents unstoppable offense.They also put up a tight defense through #8 Peter Cono that gave access to the hoops to #01 Allan Rick Faustino who got two 3-pointers while #02 Rodiemel Yap got the same that made them close the gap to level the match 54-54 at the end of the quarter and set up the stage for a seesaw battle.
But CLR were determined to win the challenge and put up a solid defense that resulted in a number of steals for them that caught their rivals unawares.They pressed on the advantage that they had gained and got more shots through #12 Romy Navarro that put them way ahead as they led by 10 points 73-63 by the end of the 3rd quarter.
Gasping for air, Tropaks tried as hard as they could to close the gap but their rivals did not seem to be in any mood to take things easy and although CLR were at the receiving end of a technical error for delaying the game this does not stop them from acquiring a 22-point victory when most of their opponents attempts from the 3 point zone fell short to finish the game with a 104-82 point victory.
The Best Player of the Game award was given to #12 Romy Navarro of CLR as he contributed 40 points.

Initial Standings
Rank Teams W L
1 Heritage 3 0
2 Papa John’s 2 0
3 Malena 2 2
4 Russel 1 1
5 Triggers 1 1
6 Triskelion 1 2
7 CLR 1 3
8 Tropaks 0 1

Inter-Company
B-Cielos vs N-Dash
B-Cielos are one of the serious contenders for this season’s crown and they proved this when they maintained their position on top of the standings after notching up their 6th victory in 7 matches when they beat N-Dash 74-70 points after a tough match.
The first quarter witnessed B-Cielos in full battle gear because they got off to a fast start by scoring 17 points, mainly through #24 Chris Mapagmahal and #14 Russel Boston while from the other side of court #24 JR Palma contributed most of the shots but it was not enough as they were 7 points behind 10-17 at the end of the first quarter.
N-Dash appeared to be overwhelmed by their rivals solid defense but despite this tight play #24 JR Palma and #13 Sinarimbo managed to gain access the hoops to keep their team in the game but B-Cielos proved that they could retain their focus and filled up the baskets with shots from #17 Rennie Orbita and #10 Edmar Briones that kept them 8 points ahead with the score 34-26 by the end of the 2nd quarter.

B-Cielos never did not at any point play easy as they put up a strong line of defense through #23 Raymond Salinas that handed an opportunity to #24 Chris Mapagmahal, #14 Russel Boston and #6 Jayson Cruz to add to the score after they received good passes from their teammates.Meanwhile, N-Dash were unable find the right antidote to match their opponents outstanding shooting although they gathered a number of points from #13 Sinarimbo and #24 JR Palma but they still conceded a 13-point lead to B-Cielos 57-44 by the end of 3rd quarter.
N-Dash put in a tremendous effort in the last quarter and collected a good amount of baskets through #65 Khaled Toledo, #34 Dennis Arcoy and #24 JR Palma but their rivals managed to stay on the winning road through #10 Edmar Briones who fired in a long shot while #14 Russel Boston never failed his teammates as he put the ball in the basket with every pass that took them to a 4 point 74-70 victory.
The Best Player of the Game award was given to #14 Russel Boston of B-Cielos.

Hilton vs Wizara
Earlier that day, Hilton were in form and it looked like the morning sun had given them tons of energy to edge Wizara — after dominating the match from start to finish — by 4 points 62-58.
The initial quarter saw a low scoring game from Wizara as they seemed to be warming up and gathered 9 points including 3-pointer from #89 Marchoni Aquino and back to back shots from #18 Marlou Rulona while from the other side of the bench #17 Dionisio Wang replied the long shot with backing from #8 Ivan Supocado that put them ahead 15-9 at the end of the first quarter.
In the next quarter, Hilton pressed hard on the accelerator and this seemed to pay dividends as they picked up another long shot from #17 Dionisio Wang and an unstoppable shot from #77 Richard Mamaril that kept them in control of the match. Although, Wizara managed to get 11 points it was not enough as they were behind 20-30 when the 1st half ended.

It was crunch time in the 3rd quarter when Wizara tried as hard as they could and combined their efforts in a bid to match their rivals.They managed to get another long shot from #89 Marchoni Aquino with a large number of shots from the free-throw line by #11 Ferdie Chaneco but Hilton were determined to keep the lead and collected back to back baskets from #7 Mansour Marwan and #8 Ivan Supocado to stay 47-40 ahead at the end of the 3rd quarter.
The last 10 minutes of the game put the observers on the edge of their seats when Wizara put in an amazing performance through a solid defense and at the same time got a number of shots from #4 Jun Abello that brought about a deadlock with the score 55-55.
Not ready to give up, the well-oiled team of Hilton came up with a game plan with a few minutes left in the match and acquired baskets through #8 Ivan Supocado and #7 Marwan Mansour that sent them to 4-point 62-58 victory just as the buzzer sounded to signal the end of the match.
Hilton also took the Best Player of the Game award when it was given to #8 Ivan Supocado.
Meanwhile, FBL-BAP organizers have announced that the last Inter-Company elimination round has been scheduled for the coming Friday with the first match at 0730 hours seeing Safir vs Baroue and the second at 0900 hours with Hilton vs Sahara.

Initial Standings
Rank Team W L
1 B-Cielos 6 1
2 Hilton Kuwait Resort 5 1
3 Safir International
Hotel 4 2
4 Baroue-Pirates 3 3
5 N-Dash 3 4
6 Sahara 2 3
7 Wizara 2 5
8 Black & White
Restaurant 0 6

FBL-BAP officials would like to inform everyone that the Inter-Company League is exclusively for the bonafide employees of the competing organizations. They also would like to inform everyone that registration is now open for the 3rd Inter-Company League which is scheduled to officially open in September.
FBL-BAP organizers would like to give special thanks to Menilyn Lavarez AIM Global, Caroll Ong from Metrobank Super Bilis Padala and Beth Garello and Reynaldo Santos from Globe Asiatique Realty Holdings Corporation for supporting their events.