Toyomoto Auto Supply initiated its journey in Davao City, never easing off the accelerator, and ultimately surged ahead of the competition in the inaugural NBTC Mindanao Regional Championship (RC).
The Davaoeños maintained an undefeated record in the tournament, with their final triumph being an 87-85 come-from-behind victory against Xavier-Ateneo de Cagayan University-Sealcor at Sarangani Capitol Gym on Sunday.
Andre Lumanag, consistently performing at full throttle and earning the title of RC Most Outstanding Player, once again led the way.
However, the pivotal moment came from reserve guard Norman Cagampang, whose three-pointer with 0.7 seconds remaining proved to be the decisive factor.
Despite the Kingfishers holding an 85-82 lead with 32 seconds left, they found themselves on the wrong side of Davao City’s comeback, culminating in Cagampang’s courageous three-pointer. He was also fouled in the process but intentionally missed the free throw to let the clock run out.
Toyomoto Auto Supply dominated Pool D before prevailing over Digos’ Cor Jesu College x El Granjero and SOCCSKSARGEN’s Notre Dame of Midsayap in the playoffs.
Lumanag, Cagampang, and their teammates displayed resilience against Xavier-AdCU-Sealcor, which had been on a four-game winning streak, in the final to emerge as Mindanao’s best.
Meanwhile, Bullet Customs Brokerage-Prime Bistro, another team from Davao City, secured the bronze medal with a superior win-loss record compared to fourth-placer Notre Dame of Midsayap.
The Final Four from Mindanao RC now shifts their focus to the 2024 Smart-NBTC National Finals presented by SM Supermalls, scheduled from March 18-24 at SM Mall of Asia Arena.
There, they will join 12 other regional qualifiers, finalists from UAAP and NCAA, 10 teams from NBTC’s Global Partners in the USA, Canada, Europe, Australia, and New Zealand, and two wildcard teams, all competing for the Philippine under-19 basketball championship.
“We saw here in Mindanao, just like North Luzon, that there are still a lot of promising young talents all over the Philippines. We are honored to provide a stage for them to showcase their skills all the way to Mall of Asia Arena,” said NBTC program director Eric Altamirano.
