TEAM Marianas’s men and women teams each notched a win and lost two games in the 2nd Annual University of Guam Friendship Games at the UOG Calvo Field House.
In the men’s division, Team Marianas beat Acdavate Men’s Team, 76-68.
Thanks to Team Marianas’s chemistry, they seized the lead in the opening quarter, 21-16.
In the second canto, however, Acdavate’s unselfish plays allowed them to overtake Team Marianas, 36-33.
But Team Marianas kept a cool head and delivered 29 team points in the third quarter led by Greg Sablan who scored 11 points, including three triples, to grasp a 62-57 advantage.
In the fourth and final quarter, Team Marianas focused on defense and allowed Acdavate only nine points to secure victory, 76-68.
Sablan led his team with 18 points.
Team Marianas, however, lost their next two games.
Against the Micronesian Islands Ballers Basketball Club or MIBBC, Team Marianas was led by Ervin Villarin with 16 points, but it wasn’t enough and they had to settle for defeat, 56-92.
Team Marianas also lost to the UOG Tritons, 76-82.
It was a seesaw battle with several lead exchanges. Team Marianas led in the first two quarters, but the UOG Tritons shadowed closely behind, 43-45.
The Tritons then seized a one-possession lead during the third canto and rode the momentum into the final quarter en route to victory, 82-76.
Last year, the Team Marianas men’s team lost all their three matches in the UOG Friendship Games.
Women’s team
The Team Marianas women had a rough start, losing to the Acdavate women’s team, 40-64, Friday night. Destiny Pangelinan led the Marianas with 13 points while team mate Angel Roligat scored nine points.
Team Marianas put up a much better fight against the MIBBC women.
It was a back-and-forth battle, but MIBBC managed to seize a three-point lead with just a few seconds left in the fourth quarter.
Team Marianas tried a three-pointer and missed, but connected a two-pointer off a rebound to lose by a mere point, 50-51.
Despite two straight losses, Team Marianas gave it their all against the UOG Tridents to win 48-33.
It was a low-scoring game with Team Marianas in the driver’s seat after three quarters, 28-27.
The Tridents aimed for a comeback in the fourth quarter and were one possession behind until Team Marianas went on a 14-1 scoring spree to slip away with the win, 48-33.
Destiny Pangelinan and Kaia Travilla led the Marianas to victory with 11 points each while team mate Maddie Alegre contributed 10 points.
Much needed experience
“It was definitely another successful trip,” said Northern Mariana Islands Basketball Federation President James Lee.
“We’ve met our two main objectives: to provide much-needed experience for our athletes, and continue building our relationship with the University of Guam and our brothers and sisters there,” he added.
NMIBF has a year-round program that starts with a tryout period in which the top 20 male and 20 female players advance to the national program followed by three months of off-season training which consists of weight and conditioning training, and followed by three months of pre-season training which consists of on-court drills.
“The UOG Friendship Games allowed our players to experience what they’ve been practicing,” Lee said. “Our athletes as well as our coaching staff can now take home the experience and continue to work on the improvements that we need. Best part about it is that we have it in film which would allow us to review and concentrate on those specific things we need to work on instead of trying to work on everything.”
Lee said “yes, we want to win on Guam, but winning was not the main objective per se. Thanks to the games that we played, our coaches and athletes were able to experience everything that they needed to experience, which allows them to assess and work on their game.”
Lee added, “On behalf of the NMI Basketball Federation, I want to give a special thanks to the University of Guam, UOG Athletic Director Mr. Doug Palmer and his staff and referees and the three teams: Acdavate, MIBBC and the Tritons/Trident.”
The Team Marianas men’s team consisted of Lucio Aldan, Kristian Tapay, Ervin Villarin, John Kae Raquepo, Keith Santos, Chioni Dela Cruz, TJ Factor, Nobet Hocog, Coby Santos, Greg Sablan, Jude Sablan, Eli Garcia and coaches James Lee and Joe Diaz.
The Team Marianas women’s team consists of Kaia Travilla, Maddie Alegre, Gabrielle Race, Marlene Lumabi, Mikki Kautz, Angel Roligat, Destiny Pangelinan, Sylvina Simram, Yasmeen Younis, Kina Rangamar, Cassie Camacho, Rae Ramarui, Quina Flores, Jehnifer Villagomez, and coaches Catherine Attao-Toves and Dave Apatang.
Team Marianas’ Ervin Villarin takes off for the finish at the rim during a game of the 2nd Annual UOG Friendship Games at the UOG Calvo Field House.
Team Marianas’ Gabrielle Race takes the contested shot in a game against the UOG Tridents during the 2nd Annual UOG Friendship Games at the UOG Calvo Field House.
