HAPEE withstood repeated rallies by MP Hotel and the Fresh Fighters preserved its pristine record heading to the Christmas break with an 84-63 victory against the Warriors on Thursday in the Philippine Basketball Association D-League Aspirants Cup at the Marikina Sports Complex.
The Warriors kept the game close for three quarters before Chris Newsome picked up his offensive rhythm in the fourth as the league leaders pulled away.
“Mahirap kalaban kapag tumatama. And we didn’t defend the way we’re supposed to. I thought Ray Ray [Parks] did another good job on both ends,” Hapee Coach Ronnie Magsanoc said afterwards.
Parks finished with a game-high 18 points and Hapee’s bench outscored MP Hotel’s second unit, 47-16, as the Fresh Fighters clinched their eighth straight win, enough to secure them an outright semifinal berth.
Ola Adeogun, Art de la Cruz, Newsome and Troy Rosario came off the bench and combined for 43 points. Newsome scored nine of his 10 points in the fourth and keyed a 16-12 run. Kirk Long started that run with a three-pointer and Newsome ended with another trey to give Hapee a comfortable 75-61 lead with 3:45 left.
Reden Celda tallied 14 points, while Jessie Collado and John Jamon added 13 and 11 points, respectively, for the Warriors, who picked up their sixth straight loss and seventh overall in eight games that practically eliminated them from the playoff race.
In the first game, MJM Builders got a lot of offensive support from its bench in dealing Wang’s Basketball its fourth consecutive loss, 79-64.
It was practically a walk in the park for the Builders, who opened the game with a 17-3 run and dictated the pace the rest of the way. They shot 59 percent from the floor in the opening quarter for a 28-16 lead.
Chris Tolomia scored 15 points and Bryan Cruz added 10 to lead a standout performance by the bench. The second unit outscored Wang’s Basketball’s bench, 41-27, to snap a three-game skid and improve to 2-6 (win-loss) record.
Assistant Coach Eric Gonzalez called the shots for the Builders in the absence of Head Coach Nash Racela, who missed the game to help Talk ’N Text prepare for Game Three of the PBA Philippine Cup semifinals.