Grace Christian College used a well-balanced attack to demolish St. Peter the Apostle School, 89-52, and move within one win of joining an elite group of back-to-back champions in the Fil-Chinese Athletic Association Inc. Basketball Tournament on Friday at the Tanduay Gym in Quiapo, Manila.
With eight of the 16 players fielded by coach Danny Ching scoring at least eight points, the Grecians turned what was expected to be a tight series in the 45-and-above division into a rout, starting like a well-oiled machine to take a 25-14 lead.
Backed by Metro Asia and Manila Bulletin, SPAS fought valiantly, but GCC refused to give an inch, intensifying its onslaught over the next two quarters to build a commanding 70-39 advantage heading into the final 10 minutes.
That proved enough for the Grecians to take the fight out of the SPAS cagers in Game One of their best-of-three title series.
Another win on Monday, Oct. 26, will allow GCC to retain its title and join the James Yap-led Hua Siong College of Iloilo as the league’s first back-to-back champion schools.
Meanwhile, Xavier School, backed by A Prime Corp. and AcroCity, clinched third place by defeating St. Jude Catholic School, 49-36.
Allan Anson Tan and Patrick Jason Lim shared scoring honors for the Mintex and Fullercon-sponsored GCC with 14 points apiece, while Jeffrey Vincent Chua added 11. Johannes Kevin Go, Cloyd Anthony Ong, and Alexander Lao combined for 25 points.
Hua Siong earlier retained its 40-and-above division title by beating Xavier School, while Hope Christian High School made history by winning the inaugural 35-and-above and 50-and-above division championships.
The Graceans delivered an inspired performance, shooting well from beyond the arc to knock down nine three-pointers, with Go and Ong accounting for three apiece.
Only Adornado Lim failed to score for GCC, but he made his presence felt by dishing out five impressive assists and grabbing a rebound in nine minutes of play.
Kerby Chua led SPAS with 14 points, while Nestor Ng and Adjong Wong added 11 and 10, respectively.
