Two Manila-based squads went unblemished in the opening day of the 2015 FIBA 3×3 World Tour Manila Masters event Saturday at the Robinsons Place Manila.
Defending Manila Masters champion Manila West, bannered by Terrence Romeo, defeated Auckland of New Zealand in its first assignment as the spitfire guard put on a dazzling display in front of a raucous crowd.
Romeo scored 12 points in the 21-18 win on a slew of moves whih caught his defenders biting the dust all-game long. Manila West, also led by KG Canaleta, Rey Guevarra, and Aldrech Ramos, took a 15-8 lead although long range bombs from Auckland pulled the team within 20-18 before Romeo’s baseline jumper ended the game.
Manila West would then beat fellow Philippine team Manila South (Joshua Sinclair, Jair Igna, Lucky Ecarma, Joshua Ortega) 21-14 to top Pool D.
Calvin Abueva’s Manila North meanwhile engaged in back to back exciting matches that provided thrill to the audience. Manila North first edged Beirut, Lebanon behind two free throws by Vic Manuel towards the end for a 20-18 victory.
The team then came from behind to stun Ljubljana of Slovenia in their other match to have a perfect slate in Pool B.
The home side controlled the opener but turnovers plus long range connections from the Slovenian side made it 16-14, with only a minute remaining.
Karl Dehesa then hit a tightly-contested trey to tie to count at 16 apiece. A miss on the other side led to a chance for Manuel to win it after a post-up. His hook shot went too strong but Troy Rosario had an offensive board and tipped in a bucket that gave them the win, 17-16.
As expected, defending World Tour champion Novi Sad Al Wahda cruised past its opponents to top Pool A heading into the quarter-finals. Led by Domovic Bulut and Dejan Majstorovic, the squad toppled Medan (21-8) and Longshi (21-6).
Doha — led by former PBA import Sammy Monroe — meanwhile went unblemished in Pool C after besting Kobe (21-12) and Kaohsiung (21-11).
Some highlights of the day include a layup and the harm by Manila West’s Terrence Romeo
And a sick tip-in dunk by former National University Bulldog Troy Rosario
Below are the full results and quarterfinal pairings:
Elimination games
Novi Sad Al Wahda def. Medan, 21-8.
Ljubljana def. Beirut, 21-12.
Doha def. Kobe, 21-12.
Manila West def. Auckland, 21-18.
Longshi def. Medan, 21-13.
Manila North def. Beirut, 20-18.
Kobe def. Kaohsiung, 21-11.
Auckland def. Manila South, 21-17.
Novi Sad Al Wahda def. Longshi, 21-6.
Manila North def. Ljubljana, 17-16.
Doha def. Kaohsiung, 21-11.
Manila West def. Manila South, 21-14.
Quarterfinals schedule for tomorrow, August 2:
13:45 Novi Sad Al Wahda vs Auckland
14:15 Doha vs Ljubljana
14:45 Manila North vs Kobe
15:15 Manila West vs Longshi
