RIYADH, 18 August 2005 — Defending Inter-Maguindanao Division champions Davao Kalagan put themselves back on track after a shaky start by beating Jolo Valiant 79-66 last Friday in the 1st Seiko-Honda and 2nd UMEA-WPBL Tournament.

H. Macarimban shot 31 points, Makagila added 20 and Unutan 14 as Davao Kalagan ended a two-game losing streak at the expense of previously unbeaten Jolo Valiant.

Macarimban and Makagila directed the offensive ball traffic for the resurgent Davao squad who found a way to neutralize the fastbreaks plays of Jolo.

Jamahali led Jolo with 23 points despite checking in with the game well into the first quarter. The weekend’s other Inter-Maguindanao C Divison contest was won by Heinz ABC Indonesia over debuting Zambasulta 67-59 last Thursday.

The victory gave coach Zaldy Mohammad’s Heinz team the lead with 3-0 win-loss record, earning at least a tie for one of four semifinal berths in the division.

Abdulkarim Trading banked on the game-long brilliance of O. Picache to beat NJ Alraya 57-54 and virtually qualify for the final four from the Inter-Commercial Bonafide Mixed B-2 division with their third straight victory.

Playing like a one-man wrecking crew, Picache shot 30 points and left Alraya helpless with his perimeter shooting and agile moves to the basket. Carbonell made 9 points and Rolly Mohammad 7 for Abdulkarim.

In the centerpiece Inter-Commercial Reinforced A division, powerhouse Samba Speed Cash rolled back Micoop Nunungan 79-69. Micoop made the game interesting when they narrowed the gap from 10 to 1 point going into the last five minutes.

But the Micoop rally died just as fast as Samba took control with consistent shooting in the final minutes to score their second straight victory. D. Rivero led a balanced Samba scoring with 15 points. N. Unas canned in 13, Gabriel 12 and O. Sahagun 11. In the other games, Panda-Savola defeated Diwan Paramount 67-61 in the Inter-Commercial Bonafide B-2 Mixed Division and Universal Motors Agency downed Zuhair Fayez Partnership 55-46 in the Inter-Commercial Bonafide B-1 category.

Universal Motors wiggled out of a tight first half to seize a 10-point lead in the third quarter and never looked back thanks to an efficient game management in the fourth quarter. Almoite, Ablaza and D. Rivero led Universal with 17, 11 and 10 points.

Universal had a split during the weekend when they took a 59-49 setback at the hands of Fuddruckers in their return to the Al Kaki Sports Complex court on Friday.

The four-division 28-team tournament enjoys the full support of two major sponsors namely Abdullah Hasim Co. Ltd. (Honda) and Alhusseini and Al-Yahya Trading Co., distributors of Seiko watches in the Kingdom.

The Honda sponsorship was facilitated by Hashim A. Hashim, the company’s managing director, Shaqib Haider, Honda Division GM, and Aiman Faleemban, Administration GM.

Seiko’s entry as the new partner of UMEA-WPBL was approved by company owner Abdulraman Al Hussaini on recommendation by Hussam Salahi and Muhammad Ali Talib.

The co-sponsors are WRJ Cargo Forwarders, Fuddruckers Restaurant, Al Masael Electronics (Installment 4 Kabayan), Al Haddaf Sports Wear and Arab News.

Games today

5:30 p.m. — M-Dizers vs Panda-Savola

7 p.m. — Zambasulta vs Sibuco Zambo Norte

8:30 p.m. — Klasmeyts vs CGS Toyota

10 p.m. — Samba Speed cash vs Al Badr Hotel

Games tomorrow

5:30 p.m.- Rasaku-ABC vs A. Karim Trading

7 p.m. — Davao Kalgan vs Socsargen

8:30 p.m. — Birks vs ACS Cargo

10 p.m. Axe-Unilever vs KFSH.