Cignal, Valencia in semis
Credit to Author: Tempo Online| Date: Mon, 27 May 2019 17:00:58 +0000
Games Tuesday (Ynares Sports Arena, Pasig City)
2 p.m. – CEU vs Go for Gold
4 p.m. – St. Clare vs Metropac
Cignal-Ateneo and City of Valencia-San Sebastian arranged a semifinal showdown after posting contrasting wins in the PBA D-League quarterfinals at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig City.
The Blue Eagles topped the Chadao-Far Eastern University, 67-60, while the Golden Harvest survived Che’Lu Bar and Grill in overtime, 93-87. Both teams entered their quarterfinal matches armed with the twice-to-beat advantage.
Thirdy Ravena of Cignal-Ateneo goes up for a shot. (PBA Images)
Ivorian center Ange Kouame had 14 points and 14 rebounds while Thirdy Ravena added 10 points, five rebounds and three assists as Cignal won despite trailing 11 points, 31-20, in the second quarter.
Ateneo was threatened in the fourth quarter when a basket by Cade Flores put FEU behind, 57-56, with 4:31 left in the fourth but Ravena scored a basket and Jolo Mendoza drained a three to make it 62-56, 2:32 remaining.
In the second game, guard Alex Desuyo scored six points in overtime as he stepped up after RK Ilagan committed his sixth foul in regulation to give Valencia-San Sebastian a hard-fought victory.
Mario Bonleon’s layup put the Golden Harvest ahead 89-87 with 38.6 remaining in the extra session before Che’Lu’s Jeff Viernes missed a three that allowed them to gain a breather.
Che’Lu forced overtime at 80-all when Jesse Collado scored off Rey Suerte’s miss at the buzzer.
Meanwhile, two more quarterfinal matches are set for Tuesday at the same venue with Centro Escolar University facing Go for Gold-St. Benilde at 2 p.m. and St. Clare-Virtual Realty taking on Metropac-San Beda at 4 p.m. (Jonas Terrado)