MALINTA DESTROYS CROWD-FAVORITE TUCALAN
A balanced combination of perimeter shooting and drives to the paint proved fatal as the Malinta cagers lambasted Tucalan Passing en route to 66-54 victory during the bracket elimination round of Dandex Cup Tournament held at Natalged Court on May 4, 2023.
Malinta outscored Passing 40-24 in the first half via short stabs and penetration combo led by Carranza and Balisi, confusing the defense of the squandering Passing.
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| Paculdar (center) drives to the basket while Cudal elevates trying to block the shot as Balisi (left) watches in elation. |
Hot-shooting Malinta extended their lead to 16 on the early of the third canto but Passing gained their composure as Bermejo and Cudal stepped on the gas to briefly cut the lead down to just 6 near the end of the quarter bringing cheers to the elated Passing die-hard fans.
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| Tucalan Passing needs more of assists like this if they want to become a contender. |
On the last salvo, Malinta coach Kamar Delos Santos adjusted their game plan, employing more assists that saw Paculdar, Duldulao and the bench joined the scoring spree as they silenced the crowd. Passing has never came back in the fourth after the assaults mainly from short jumpers on the wings and attacks on the shaded lane.
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| Biag stands his ground against the high-flying Bermejo (right) in one of the rebound plays. |
Malinta held on to their lead of 12 until the end game as turnovers have afflicted Passing that doomed their very hope to draw the first blood.
Carranza was declared the best player of the game.
