Jamed, Al Jomaih down rivals in Jufffali basketball semifinals

The 11th week of the Juffali Basketball League marked the start of the semifinal round in the Inter-Automotive and Inter-Department divisions while the Inter-Company is on its last knockout matches going into the semis.
Jamed of Coach Alfred Macatangay grabbed its first win in the semis over rival Hyundai (Al Wahlan) of Omar Jordan, 92-74, a huge 18 points advantage that could enhance team statistics as it battles its way to the finals.
The winning team maintained a 10-point margin in the first three quarters and went for the kill in the last canto through a 25-11 run. De Villa led his team with a game-high 37 points to go with 3 assists, 2 steals and 7 rebounds. Fernando also added 15 points along with 4 assists, 2 steals and 4 rebounds. Colderia scored 28 points with 6 rebounds for losing side including Garibay 20 points.
In another game in the Inter-Automotive semifinal, Al Jomaih of Edwin Deraco snatched a convincing 109-105 win from Jaco, the leader in the preliminary round.
It was a see-saw battle with Jomaih securing the upper hand in the first quarter, 27-24 but Jaco outscored them in the second quarter 52-51. Jomaih retaliated in the third canto with Torres and Cruz each scoring11 points for an 89-73 count.
Jaco staged a comeback in the last quarter with an 8-point advantage (28-20 points) but it was not enough to outpoint the winners. Torres scored 40 big points for Jomaih, 25 for Bayani and 19 for Cruz. For the losers, Lesondra top-scored at 41 and 23 for Gragasin.
In the Inter-Company division, Panda forced a knockout match with Saudi Ericsson after denying No. 2 contender Petromin, 77-76 in their last battle before the semifinal round. The win will give them a last chance to join three more teams in the upper ladder if they successfully beat the telecom operators in the next showdown. A loss will mean they are out of the contest. Ventos led Panda with 20 points while Brezuela fired the highest score at 17 for Petromin.
Panda and Ericsson are tied at 5-3 card while Hokair topped the standings at 8-1. Saudi Lebanese Tarouk trails at 7-2 and Petromin 5-4.
In the Inter-Automotive Jaco, Al Jomaih, Petromin and United Motors made the semis. In the Inter-Department, Saudi Ericsson will battle with Jamed, Al Bazai and Hyundai (Al Wahlan). The semifinal round is a single round-robin format with the top two teams to battle for the championship crown.
This event is organized by the Juffali Sports Cub headed by Nonong Victoriano, the chairman, with Western Union, Juffali Benz Cars and JIPCO as main sponsors. The league’s secondary sponsors are The Filipino Dentists Group of Saudi Arabia of Lourdes Madayag, Laguna Lakers Cargo Forwarders of Dante Layosa, WRJ Freight Forwarders of Jong Magallanes, Merex Forwarders of Michael Casinos, and Pepsi Cola.