BACOLOD City – Bacolod Master Sardines got its offense going in the second half and took down Soccsksargen Marlins, 89-80, in the 2019-2020 Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League Lakan Cup at the University of St. La Salle Coliseum here.
Bacolodnon Nico Paolo Javelona top-scored with 27 points, 19 in the first half on Saturday, while Mark Tallo tallied most of his 22 points in the second half.
The Master Sardines hiked its record to 6-8.
Bacolod was forced to a tight match with the Marlins in the opening half and even went down by as much as eight points. But conversions from Javelona pulled the home team to within 44-45 at the half.
Bacolodnons opened the third period with a 12-3 scoring run. Newcomer Jerick Canada connected well with Tallo and Javelona. They built the largest lead of the match at 12 points.
The Marlins had several times cut into the Bacolod’s deficit in the fourth quarter with the closest at seven points. However, free throw conversions from Erwin Santos sealed the win for the home team.
Norman Gonzales finished with 23 points while Exequiel Biteng and Raniel Jake Diwa chipped in 18 and 13 markers, respectively, as the Marlins slumped to their 14th consecutive defeat in as many games.
In the first game, Negrense Mark Yee played an inspired game as the Davao Occidental Tigers cruised to a 76-71 victory over Basilan Steel. The Sagay City-native Yee top-scored with 22 points as the Tigers improved to 13-2 slate./PN
