Go For Gold sinks Marinero, secures top two in playoffs
Go For Gold secured a top two finish in the 2018 Philippine Basketball Association Developmental League (PBA D-League) Foundation Cup after mauling Marinerong Pilipino-Technological Institute of the Philippines (TIP), 86-71, on Monday at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig City.
The Scratchers pulled away in the third quarter en route to their seventh win against two losses.
With the improved record, Go For Gold sealed one of the top two spots heading to the playoffs and gained a share of the lead anew with Che’lu Bar & Grill. The two will battle for the top spot on Thursday.
Go For Gold’s Gab Banal dribbles the ball against Marinerong Pilipino’s Jorey Napoles during the 2018 PBA D-League Foundation Cup on Monday at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig City. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
Head coach Charles Tiu praised his Scratchers for their airtight defense that allowed them to heavily outscore the Engineers, 25-8, in the breakaway third period.
“They just played better defense. We won’t score as much as we want to but if we play defense, we’ll have a chance to win every game,” said Tiu.
Jai Reyes fired a game-high 19 points to spearhead four other Scratchers in double-digit scoring. The pint-sized guard also racked up eight assists, six rebounds and three steals.
Dan Wong drilled in 14 points, returning Gab Banal finished with 13 markers while Eric Pili and Rey Publico chipped in 12 and 10, respectively.
Following a close contest in the first half, Go For Gold came out with guns blazing from beyond the arc as Reyes, Pili and Wong combined for five triples that turned into a 59-41 lead late in the third frame.
Vince Tolentino completed a three-point play to hand the Scratchers their largest lead at 69-46 with 7:11 left and they went on to score the romp.
Abu Tratter led the Marinero-TIP with 16 points and eight rebounds while Biboy Enguio added 10 markers.
The Engineers, who suffered an 88-93 loss to the Scratchers in the first round, saw their three-game winning streak end as they dropped to a share of third with Centro Escolar University (CEU) on identical 5-4 records.
Playoff-bound teams Marinero and CEU will dispute the No. 3 spot in the final playdate.
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