KUWAIT CITY, July 26: The game appeared to be just another routine match between two unfancied teams and everyone seemed bored at the start only to be jolted out of their reverie when the seemingly exciting action later turned into a nail-biting and nerve wracking encounter that sent adrenalines racing. Friday habitués at the Kuwait Sports Club for the Disabled in Hawally where the ongoing PABAK/Western Union 21st Conference Basketball Tournament is being held, were treated to a heart-stopping spectacle in the day’s opening game: the 75-67 double overtime win by the KEO Engineers over the Gulf Net squad.

Both squads dropped bombs from behind the arc in their opening salvos with Jason Manalac for KEO and Ferdy Villanueva of Gulf Net burying 3s and it was tit-for-tat after that with the engineers nosing ahead 13-12 after the first quarter of play.
Then, KEO’s guns went cold in the second quarter with only Ado Prado and Edmar Sumande able to buy baskets while Gulf Net went on a 15-4 run behind the combined tally of Anton Delos  Reyes, Jody Napalla and Gimo Icasiano that saw the latter posting a 27-17 bubble at halftime.

Stung, the engineers went on scoring blitz of their own in the third sparked by Sumande who was joined by Ado Prado, Ryan Dumol, Benedict Dumayas, Leo Lagaras and Erwin Olido in a 26-12 run, overhauling Gulf Net’s lead to take the driver’s seat 43-39 at the end of the period.
Both squads tightened their defenses going into the fourth and final quarter and they struggled for points almost the entire period although Gulf Net had a slight edge in scoring with Allan Rualo, Rommel Del Rosario, Villanueva and Gimo Icasiano outscoring the engineers’ Sumande and Prado who managed to knot the count 46-all at the end of regulation play.
Gulf Net was the big loser in the equation when big guy Rommel Del Rosario fouled out in the fourth quarter. Although he did not figure much in the scoring department, his intimidating presence inside the shaded area was a big factor in the team’s defensive rotation.

In the first extra period, Prado, Lagaras and Dumayas battled Gulf Net’s Jody Napalla, Icasiano (who buried two treys) and Anton Delos Reyes to another standoff at 57-all to send the game into a second overtime.
The second extra time saw Sumande who was momentarily silenced in the first OT, come alive, partnering Ado Prado in a scoring duel with Gulf Net’s Rualo, Icasiano, Napalla and Delos Reyes.
With Del Rosario out, Sumande went to work with Leo Lagaras three fourths of the way in the second OT, taking turns at the hoop while their teammates held down the Gulf Net scorers. From a 67-67 standoff, Sumande and Lagaras joined hands, scoring all of their team’s 8-pt winning margin at the buzzer with four apiece.
Sumande and Prado shared top-scoring honors with 22 markers apiece while Lagaras added 9 and the rest was spread among the rest of the team.
Gimo Icasiano paced Gulf Net with 21 points while Anton Delos Reyes, Jody Napalla and Allan Rualo shot 13, 12 and 5 points respectively.
Both teams had contrasting fates last week, the KEO engineers lost to Kaico Sports Club last week while Gulf Net sank Heisco Marine.
ARU Logistics 71, Pacific Logistics International Cargo (PLIC) 65.
Arnold De Leon, Tom Kalaquian and Norman Neri scored 22, 13 and 11 points respectively in ARU Logistics’ win over defending 5’10”&under champs PLIC in their game two encounter.
De Leon was a tower of strength under the boards, Neri was effective in the perimeter and Kalaquian provided the hustle while also making clutch hits  and quarterbacking  ARU’s offense. Man2 Maglantay and Bong Dwiggins added 8 points apiece in the victory.
Chris Ingal also tallied 22 points with Edward Gueco, Cris Dela Cruz and Freddie Cortez chipped in 11, 10 and 9 points apiece in PLIC’s loss.

Hound Dogs 80, Wataniya 66.
Kenneth Najera and James Carillo led a balanced-scoring attack in the Hound Dog squad’s victory over Wataniya with 13 and 11 points respectively to put their campaign for the 5’10’&under title back on track after a string of losses.
Jayson Repollo had a game-high 23 points, leading three other airmen in double figures: Anton Delos Reyes 14, Glen Cruz 13 and Paulo Chun 12 points.
Heisco Marine 64,  RCS Tamar

aw 54.
Ivan Alcantara led a three prong offense with Raymond Pacer and Kenneth Santillan to lead upstart Heisco Marine to a 64-54 triumph over a veteran laden RCS Tamaraw squad in another Inter-Company match in game four.
Alcantara delivered 20 markers with Pacer and Santillan adding 15 and 11 points respectively in Heisco Marine’s win.
Former 3-pt king El-El Enriquez showed flashes of his old brilliance in leading RCS Tamaraw in the losing effort with 13 points. Noel Yncierto, another long tom artist, made 12 and Ensoy Madjos, a grizzled veteran, tallied 11.

New Cliffe General Trading Co. 72, Hotline Cargo 70.
In another exciting encounter in game four, New Cliffe General Trading Co. came from behind to beat Hotline Cargo in their game five meeting in the 5’10”&under group.
Hotline Cargo was leading comfortably by double digits going into the fourth and final quarter and all they needed was to tighten their defense and maintain their advantage by dictating the tempo of the game. Instead, the opposite happened, allowing New Cliffe to regroup and mount a counterattack that saw their once comfortable lead slowly dissipate.
Led by the irrepressible Allen Adorador who virtually tore apart Hotline Cargo’s defense with bold lane drives and clutch hits from the perimeter while also dishing out assists to open teammates, New Cliffe came from as much as 15 points down midway in the final quarter to pip Hotline Cargo 72-70.
Adorador finished with 20 points in leading New Cliffe General Trading Co. to the win while Noel Yncierto added 18, Jojo Lodonia 9 and Chris Taub 8 points.
Fernando “Steve Nash” Lacerona paced Hotline Cargo also scoring 20 points with Angel Rillo and Freddie Eugenio had 13 and 10 points apiece in the losing effort.

DXN Ganoderma Eagles 59 Berksmen Barako 53
After defanging the Hound Dogs last week, the Berksmen Barakos were dumped by the Ganoderma Eagles in their game six meeting in the 5’10”&under group.
The eagles rode the double digit outputs of Toti Catabay, Marlon Batino and Reu Nuque to inflict the loss on a Barako squad missing like Mike Sunague, Jeff Bargayo, Edmund Davantes and point guard Aries Garcera.
Catabay scored 13 with Batino and Nuque adding 12 and 10 points apiece. Marlon Bautista scored a game-leading 20 points and was the only Barako in double digits.

Pogi Points 61,  National Aviation Services (NAS) 54
Pogi Points was on the verge of losing, trailing NAS 43-46 with the clock fast winding down when Nelson Fermil came up with what could probably be the biggest shot of his life when he let loose a desperation jumper from behind the arc that found the mark just as the buzzer sounded, knotting the count 46-all to send the game into an extra five minutes to decide the winner.
The NAS flyers were dominant throughout the regulation period, with Bobby Atienza, Nato Palenzuela, Noel Vera and Ariel Legaspi forming an effective scoring combination.
But Fermil’s buzzer beating shot changed all that. The flyers seemed to have lost their composure and fell behind, outscored 15-8 by Pogi Points on the combined hits of Edwin Cinco, Fermil and Jonathan Ilanena.
Fermil scored 18 points in leading his team to victory. Cinco and Ilanena added 10 and 7 apiece. Pacing NAS in defeat were Atienza with 16, Palenzuela 10, Vera 9 and Legaspi 9 points.

Kout Food Group 96, National Aviation Services 61
Jeff Robledo unloaded 20, Ralf Banez added 14, Marlon Yape 13 and Albert Lodronio 11 points in Kout Food Group’s blowout win over the hapless NAS flyers in their game eight meeting in the Inter-Company group.
NAS was paced in the loss by Moises Macera who tallied 18, Raymillan Masenguiato 11 and Noel Vera 10 points.
In the lone Inter-Medical group schedule for the day, KCCC dumped Al Razi Hospital 63-56 behind the Sepulveda’s 18, Lou Jay Uy’s 16 and Emil Azucena’s 8 points.
The hardworking Jerry Geronimo did all he could to spark life into his team’s moribund play but his efforts went for naught despite a game-leading 23-pt output.

By Boie Conrad Dublin
Arab Times Staff