ATHLETICS

Xavier Crushes St. Jude in Tiong Lian Basketball

Edited by Aaron Chan (Stallion Associate Editor)

Posted Thursday, 02-Feb-2006 12:21 PM

     In one of the most anticipated match-ups in the 30th Metro Manila Tiong Lian Basketball Association, Xavier School blew away St. Jude Catholic School with an overwhelming victory, 105-48.

     Spectators had predicted that this year’s season would be all about three teams, namely Xavier School (XS), St. Jude (SJCS) and Chiang Kai Shek (CKSC), but Xavier defeated CKSC, formerly a championship contender, 97 to 82 in the opening games, which granted Xavier its first opening win in three years.

     With that victory in hand, there was only one school in Xavier’s path and St. Jude was already shaping up to be a tough adversary. The SJCS team is led by Carl Cua (SJCS 9), who plays an all-around game, while Xavier is led by Woodward Co (XS 7), who is already well into his 3rd season for the Juniors Division. The Xavier team was also backed up by its excellent coaching staff that included Coaches Patrick Aquino, Bong Ocampo, Lito Vergara and Nemi Villegas.

     As spectators from both schools settled to watch, the game started with SJCS getting the first possession of the ball and Golanco (SJCS 13) scoring the first two points of the game. SJCS started the game with a 2-3 zone defense while Xavier pressured their opponent’s full court.

     Xavier scored 8 straight points that made the score 8-2 with around 6 minutes left. SJCS got the score tie at 11 all before they pulled the lead to 13-11, but Xavier’s Philip Ong then sank two free throws that tied the game.

     The game continued with neither team gaining an advantage until Xavier’s I.C. Sta. Maria sank consecutive 3-pointers which gave Xavier a lead of 22-15. Xavier would cement its lead in the second quarter, with Philip Ong and Ron Chua providing the scoring momentum. With 5 minutes left in the quarter, Xavier’s lead was now at 41-19.

     In the closing half of the game, SJCS came out with renewed fire, but the solid Xavier lead proved too strong to overcome, even with the best efforts of the opposition. In the closing minutes of the fourth quarter, Shaun Lim put Xavier’s score past the 100 mark with another 3-pointer. Another two points from Xavier would prove to the final nail in the coffin, with the game ending at 105-48 for a Xavier win.

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