JUN Estolas celebrated twice as hard during the finale of the Win Pacific Corporation Invitational Basketball League 2024 after his team, 670 Gravity, claimed the masters division championship title, and his other team, SMJ Corp., clinched the semi open division title by trouncing Alsa Baso, 83-56, at the TSL Sports Complex.
Khristian David acted as the sparkplug by scoring the first two buckets for SMJ while a series of triples by Aiden Suba, Frank Ferrer, and Alex Robles followed as their team seized a commanding 13-0 lead after only 10 minutes of play.
Following a timely substitution, Alsa Baso’s Dennis Calunsag broke his team’s silence with a pair of free throws, which were followed by a pair of three-pointers courtesy of Tony Kim and another by Calunsag to cut SMJ’s lead.
Despite Alsa Baso’s efforts, however, they failed to keep the momentum burning as SMJ turned each missed shot into a made bucket on the other end. Led by Ferrer and Charlz Sanchez with 10 and six points, respectively, SMJ retained a comfortable double-digit advantage, 41-28.
Estolas, playing his second game of the night, had the privilege of resting as SMJ maintained their dominant performance throughout the game.
SMJ’s Sean Licayan, who knocked down a triple before halftime, continued his bombardment with three consecutive makes at the start of the second half while teammates David and Robles prolonged the punishment from inside the paint to further stretch the gap.
Chris Sanchez, Jepoy Tabora, and Kim tried to keep Alsa Baso in the game, but lacking a defensive presence, they could not escape the inevitable defeat and eventually bowed down to SMJ, 56-83.
Besides Estolas, Jerome Directo and Erwin Lumanlan ended the night with two championships as members of the 670 Gravity and SMJ Corp. teams.
Scores:
SMJ Corp 83 – Sean Licayan 20, Alex Robles 16, Khristian David 10, Frank Ferrer 10, Aiden Suba 7, Nikko Mejarito 6, Charlz Sanchez 6, Jun Estolas 3, Marl Balignasay 3, Paolo Yanto 2
Also Baso 56 – Tony Kim 18, Dennis Calunsag 13, Jepoy Tabora 9, Chris Sanchez 6, Adi Tabora 4, James Kintz 4, Jun Javier 2
SMJ Corp. players pose for a group photo with the semi open division championship trophy during the awards ceremony of the Win Pacific Corporation Invitational Basketball League 2024 at the TSL Sports Complex on Sunday.
Alsa Baso’s Tony Kim pulls up for a three-point shot during the championship game against SMJ Corp. in the semi open division of the Win Pacific Corporation Invitational Basketball League 2024 at the TSL Sports Complex on Sunday.
SMJ Corp’s Khristian David takes the fadeaway jumper during the championship game against Alsa Baso in the semi open division of the Win Pacific Corporation Invitational Basketball League 2024 at the TSL Sports Complex on Sunday.
