With Raymar Jose in control down low and their long bombs on point, the Cignal HD Hawkeyes bamboozled the Marinerong Pilipino Skippers, 87-64, Tuesday afternoon to sweep their best-of-three semifinals series and earn their ticket to the Foundation Cup Final.
Jose, a hardworking forward from the Far Eastern University, was the stabilizing force for the Hawkeyes in the paint, as he posted 24 points and 11 rebounds despite coming off the bench to help his crew earn a second straight trip to the championship series.
Aiding Cignal was their superb 11-of-31 sniping from threes, with the trio of Pamboy Raymundo, Byron Villarias, and Jonathan Uyloan all having a field day from rainbow country.
Raymundo shot 4-of-7 from beyond the arc to fire 18 markers, four assists, and three rebounds, Villarias hit three triples to wound up with 16 points, and Uyloan unloaded 15 markers built on four treys, as they all teamed up to preserve the eight-point barrier in the second half and fend off the Skippers.
“It’s about time that we made our three points. We really practiced hard on that. It just came out in this game and I’m really thankful to my players because coach Koy (Banal)’s adjustments were on the spot, but the kick out passes were there and I told them that if they’re open, they should take it and I’m happy that they made their shots,” said coach Boyet Fernandez.
Having won eight straight games, Cignal have inched closer in their quest to snare two straight titles in the developmental league.
“We’re happy that we made it to the Finals,” said Fernandez. “It was a tough conference for us. We played seven straight in three weeks, but we’re here and hopefully, we’ll finish it with a championship.”
Robbie Herndon led Marinerong Pilipino with 17 points and five rebounds, while Jeff Javillonar also had 17 markers and four boards in the loss.
The Hawkeyes await the winner of the Flying V-CEU series for their date in the best-of-three Finals.
The Scores:
Cignal HD 87 – Jose 24, Raymundo 18, Villarias 16, Uyloan 15, Bringas 8, Perkins 4, Cahilig 2, Apinan 0, Arboleda 0, Belencion 0, Sara 0, Sumalinog 0.
Marinerong Pilipino 64 – Herndon 17, Javillonar 17, Javelona 7, Subido 7, Isip 6, Alabanza 2, Iñigo 2, Lopez 2, Publico 2, Sargent 2, Gabriel 0, Gumaru 0, Marata 0, Moralde 0.
Quarterscores: 22-14, 39-31, 59-48, 87-64.
