Members of team Blue Haus pose with the masters division championship trophy of the Saipan Centennial Lions Club Invitational Basketball League at the Koblerville gym on Tuesday.
Blue Haus’ Marlon De Dios gets fouled as he goes up for the shot during the masters division championship game of the Saipan Centennial Lions Club Invitational Basketball League Tuesday at the Koblerville gym.
BLUE Haus won the masters division championship of the Saipan Centennial Lions Club Invitational Basketball League after outlasting Blue Eagle, 68-66, Tuesday at the Koblerville gym.
Blue Haus heated up from behind the three-point line to quickly establish control.
JR Barrios knocked down three consecutive triples while team mate Marlon De Dios delivered the buckets to gain the double-digit advantage. Tony Diaz then kept the fire burning with back-to-back three-pointers.
Blue Eagle could only score eight team points as Blue Haus seized a comfortable lead, 28-8.
Despite their strong start, Blue Haus soon fell into an offensive slump while Blue Eagle turned the tables and held Blue Haus to just six team points in the second quarter.
The pressure defense also allowed Blue Eagle to turn trash into gold with Andrew Ashburn and Jetzen Jandoc scoring three makes from beyond the arc while De Shawn Reign muscled his way inside the paint to convert four points and close the gap, 24-34.
Blue Haus kept their cool with great ball movement, feeding Junar Guiab and Barrios with nine and six points, respectively.
However, Blue Eagle fought back with Ashburn, Reign and Mark Francisco delivering much needed points to further reduce the lead by the end of the third canto, 48-52.
After three minutes of back-and-forth exchanges in the fourth and final quarter, Blue Eagle rallied their way to the first deadlock of the game, 57-57. For a brief moment, they even took control thanks to Reign, drawing the and-one play and chipping in three points from the free throw line.
But Blue Eagle failed to handle the ball with care and committed crucial turnovers that created an opportunity for Blue Haus to regain the driver’s seat.
Elmer Esdrelon missed two attempts from the charity line, but Blue Haus controlled the boards, allowing second-chance buckets by Guiab and De Dios to give their team the lead, 66-63, with less than two minutes left on the clock.
Although Ashburn kept Blue Eagle’s hopes alive with a clutch shot, the team failed to find high-percentage looks and was forced to foul to stop the clock.
Blue Haus’ De Dios and Guiab then managed to drain the much-needed free throw attempts to maintain the upper hand.
With only a second left, Reign threw a Hail Mary from one end of the court to the other, but the ball did not come close to the rim.
Blue Haus won the game and the championship, 68-66.
Mythical five
During the awards ceremony, the mythical five players were announced:
Best Guards Elmer Esdrelon and Chris George; Best Forwards Andrew Ashburn and Jorge De Guzman; and Best Center De Shawn Reign.
The Best Coach Award went to Dan Chan.
Elmer Esdrelon was named regular season MVP while JR was the finals MV.
Blue Eagle claimed second place; Ol’Aces came in third; and A’s Car Airconditioning took fourth place.
Scores:
Blue Haus 68 – JR Barrios 20, Junar Guiab 14, Elmer Esdrelon 13, Marlon De Dios 7, Tony Diaz 8, Alex Lauron 6
Blue Eagle 66 – Andrew Ashburn 20, De Shawn Reign 16, Jetzen Jandoc 13, Joel Javier 7, Mark Francisco 6, Melvin Villarin 2, Dexter Mediola 2
