JEDDAH, 10 May — Sharbatly Coldstores got their time and can now pride themselves on being called winners, as they posted an 80-72 victory over Zuhair Fayez, while the Strikers survived a late charge by Giant Stores to win, 80-69, in the 9th ALJ Invitational Basketball Tournament at the ALJ court in Jeddah.
Tacuboy shone the brightest among the stable of fast emerging stars, as he provided both the cushion and the crucial blows that helped Sharbatly plowing through the win. He popped his surprises early, bombing an erratic Zuhair Fayez with several triples that pushed Sharbatly to a 38-36 lead at the half time break.
Entering the crucial third quarter, the tandem of Nebrida and Tiu stood out for Zuhair Fayez by chasing loose balls and convert into points. They continued to mount back after back, keeping Zuhair Fayez within a striking distance, but Sharbatly did an even more virtuoso act through Tacuboy, Diansay and Remigio. It was merely the fact that they provided Sharbatly with 33 points and held Zuhair Fayez to 20 points in the excruciating final quarter.
The Strikers ripped the game wide open as early as the first quarter, taking a 22-11 lead. Despite repeated rallies by Giant Stores, they took the game out of their opponents’ hands as every Strikers player on the court took turns in dealing the death blow that left Giant Stores limping. Bong Umlas and Nava were the top-gunners in eking out the victory, connecting 24 and 14 points, with the towering Osama controlling the boards and added 10 points.
On the Giant Stores side, the loss was somewhat alarming despite putting the blame partly on the players who arrived late due to heavy traffic. They fought hard and even managed scale the deficit down to just two behind the efforts of Jamahali, Roquellas, Morales and Diaz. While Giant Stores run out of gas, Jamahali still managed to pump in 21 points, with Diaz and Roquellas contributing 14 and 11, respectively. PCC-ALJ, after losing two games out of three, came up with renewed fire and intensity in the final quarter to prevail over Fujitech, 91-88. They battled from a poor three-quarter start, 18-26, 25-22 and 20-28, before playing with great determination, using speed and pressure defense to full effect.
