The Che’Lu Revellers got themselves back to their old winning ways with an 88-71 drubbing of the Marinerong Pilipino Skippers, for their first win in the 2018 PBA D-League Foundation Cup, Monday afternoon at the Ynares Sports Arena.
Jessie Collado came alive late and scored 10 fourth quarter points, finishing with 10 and four rebounds, as last year’s runner-up chalked one in the win column.
The Revellers also got significant contributions from veterans Jeff Viernes, who had 14 points, five boards, and four assists, and Jay-R Taganas, who tallied a double-double of 12 points and 10 rebounds.
Coach Stevenson Tiu couldn’t be more happy with the grit his old reliables showed after laying down the challenge to the team on the heels of Che’Lu’s 94-78 defeat to the CEU Scorpions.
“I asked for their commitment, lalo na sa veterans. Sabi ko sa kanila, kayo dapat ang mag-lead ng team and they responded very well,” he said. “We played much better compared sa first game namin kasi kulang talaga kami sa preparations.”
The Revellers showed immense poise, as Viernes kept his side fighting even after the Skippers took nine-point leads early on in the game.
Che’Lu put everything together after the break, overturning a close 43-38 halftime deficit before outscoring Marinerong Pilipino, 50-28 in the second half.
“Hopefully, tuloy-tuloy na ito,” exclaimed Tiu.
Robbie Manalang carried the Skippers (1-1) with 18 points and four assists, while Trevis Jackson had 16 points, six dimes, and five boards.
The Scores:
Che’Lu 88 — Collado 20, Viernes 14, Taganas 12, Bitoon 11, Melano 8, Sta. Ana 6, Mallari 4, Ochea 4, Ng 3, Flores 2, Lao 2, Siruma 2.
Marinerong Pilipino 71 — Manalang 18, Jackson 16, Napoles 13, Tratter 8, Gomez de Liaño 6, Johnson 5, Toth 3, Ndiaye 2, Medina 0, Santos 0.
Quarterscores: 19-23, 38-43, 58-57, 88-71.
