Hope Christian Edges CKSC
by Henry Liao for philippinebasketball.ph (01/28/2012)

Day 4, Chiang Kai Shek College Gym
Jan. 28

Game Results:
Grace Christian College 49 ? Hope Christian High School 37
Xavier School 76 ? St. Jude Catholic School 52
Chiang Kai Shek College 112 ? St. Stephen?s High School 47

Day 5, Chiang Kai Shek College Gym
Jan. 29

Game Results:
Chiang Kai Shek College 103 ? Xavier School 42
St. Stephen?s High School 65 ? Grace Christian College 54
St. Jude Catholic School 66 ? Hope Christian High School 60

Team Standings:
Chiang Kai Shek College (5-0)
Xavier School (4-1)
St. Jude Catholic (3-2)
St. Stephen?s High School (2-3)
Grace Christian College (1-4)
Hope Christian High School (0-5)

Note: Uno High School has no Aspirants team. (End of Elimination Round)

Games Schedule:
Feb. 4 (Sat) ? Semifinals No. 1 Chiang Kai Shek College vs. No. 4 St. Stephen?s HS (9 a.m.) and Semifinals No. 2 Xavier School vs. No. 3 St. Jude Catholic School (10:30 p.m.); Feb. 7 (Tue) ? Playoff, if necessary (5:30 p.m.); and Feb. 9 (Thu) ? Playoff, if necessary (5:30 p.m.). Note: No. 1 and No. 2 have a twice-to-beat advantage over their respective opponents. Xavier School is the nine-time defending champion in the Aspirants Division.

JUNIORS DIVISION

Day 7, Uno High School Gym
Jan. 28

Game Results:
St. Jude Catholic School 79? St. Stephen?s High School 50
Hope Christian High School 59 ? Chiang Kai Shek College 57

Team Standings:
Hope Christian High School (5-0)
Xavier School (3-1)
Chiang Kai Shek College (3-2)
St. Jude Catholic School (2-2)
St. Stephen?s High School (1-3)
Uno High School (1-3)
Grace Christian College (0-4)

Games Schedule: Jan. 31 (Tue) ? St. Jude Catholic School vs. Xavier School (5:30 p.m.) and Uno High School vs. St. Stephen?s High School (7 p.m.); Feb. 3 (Fri) ? Xavier School vs. Grace Christian College (5:30 p.m.) and Chiang Kai Shek College vs. St. Stephen?s High School (7 p.m.); and Feb. 4 (Sat) ? Hope Christian High School vs. Uno High School (5 p.m.) and Grace Christian College vs. St. Jude Catholic School (6:30 p.m.). (End of Elimination Round)

ST. JUDE CATHOLIC SCHOOL 79 ? ST. STEPHEN?S HIGH SCHOOL 50
Notes: St. Jude Catholic School got off to a quick start, capturing the first quarter, 10-6. But St. Stephen?s HS, behind the snipings of pint-sized guard Kevin Ng, hotshot Pierre Chan and center Adrian Te, came roaring back to take the lead twice ? 19-17 on a Chan three and 21-20 on a Chan twinner ?
The Judenites detonated an 8-0 bomb to erect a 28-21 advantage and never trailed thereafter. SJCS?s top gun Jason Ligad had nine points after the first 20 minutes, including a trifecta that gave his school a 31-23 lead at halftime. Ng kept SSHS alive with 10 markers in the first half ?
After Ng opened second-half hostilities with a basket, 31-25, Ligad scored eight consecutive points to give SJCS coach Cholo Villanueva?s boys a commanding 39-25 lead. St. Jude CS was ahead by at least 10 points the rest of the way, grabbing a 59-34 advantage at the end of the third quarter. Its largest lead was 69-38 (31 points) early in the payoff period?
Ligad wound up with 29 points (9-22 FGA, 3-12 3FGA, 8-10 FTA), including 20 in the second half. He also had five steals ?
Bruiser Richard Sy registered a double-double for the Judenites with 13 markers and 15 rebounds. SJCS missed the services of Kurt Uy for a third straight game due to an ankle sprain ?
SSHS was bannered by Ng, who had 17 points, and Chan, who scored a dozen markers and grabbed seven boards. Te contributed 12 reebies and eight points.

HOPE CHRISTIAN HIGH SCHOOL 59 ? CHIANG KAI SHEK COLLEGE 57
Notes: With the come-from-behind victory, Hope Christian formally clinched the No. 1 position after the single-round elimination phase and advanced directly into the semifinals armed with a twice-to-beat advantage over the winner of the No. 4 vs. No. 5 quarterfinal series. HCHS completes its first-round assignments against Uno HS on Feb. 4 (Sat) ?
With the defeat, Chiang Kai Shek College will likely be ranked No. 3 unless Xavier School, which currently holds the No. 2 spot, drops its game against SJCS on Jan. 31 (Tues) to create a three-way logjam for second place. The quotient system will be utilized to break the deadlock. The Blue Dragons lost to XS, 71-66, but whipped SJCS, 75-55 ?
Errol Villar opened the game with back-to-back baskets as Hope Christian went up 4-0. CKSC countered with a 7-0 blast, including five by John Kevin Baytan, for a 7-4 edge. Mammoth center Wilson Bartolome chalked up six points as CKSC took the first quarter, 19-13?
Another undergoal stab by Bartolome to start the second quarter lifted the Blue Dragons to a 21-13 advantage. It was the largest lead by either side in the game ?
HCHS went on a 13-2 run to move ahead, 26-23. Baytan, however, connected on a three and John Paul Nieles knocked in a short jumper as CKSC regained the upperhand, 28-26, at halftime ?
CKSC enjoyed seven-point leads thrice in the third quarter ? 38-31 on a Carlo Young trifecta, 42-35 on a Bartolome free throw and 46-39 on another Young three-pointer to conclude the third quarter ?
HCHS deadlocked the count at 48-all on a Don Mendoza putback at the 7:19 mark of the fourth quarter. Coach Stevenson Tiu?s troops was back on the lead for the first time since the final minute of the second quarter when King Benemerito scored, 50-48, with 6:34 left ? Southpaw Joshua Tan hit a trey with 5:35 left and CKSC was on top again, 51-50. Villar retaliated with his own three and the lead changed hands once more in Hope Christian?s favor, 53-51. Baytan struck for five unanswered points, including a trifecta that pushed CKSC up by three, 56-53, at the 2:37 mark ?
Kimlee Bayquin split his free throws for a 57-54 advantage for coach Goldwin Monteverde?s charges, with only one minute and 25 ticks left. Seventeen seconds later, Janrey Garrido hit Clint Doliquez with an inside shot to trim HCHS?s deficit to one, 57-56. Then came the game-winning three-point bomb by Garrido with 42.8 seconds remaining for a 59-57 lead by HCHS ? Baytan committed an error with 32.6 ticks left but Garrido himself turned over the rock with 11.2 seconds remaining to give CKSC one last opportunity to send the game into overtime or even a victory with a three ?
Instead, Baytan was forced to hoist an airball after he was tightly defended near the basket ? Mendoza and Benemerito scored 13 and 10 points, respectively, for Hope Christian. Mendoza also collected eight rebounds, four assists and five steals in 29 minutes off the bench. Benemerito also grabbed nine boards in 18 minutes as a substitute. Villar contributed nine markers and seven reebies and Garrido, who knocked in a pair of three-pointers to start and end the fourth quarter, and Edralin Villanueva, had eight points each ?
Baytan registered a double-double for Chiang Kai Shek College with 19 points (including 4-for-6 from beyond the three-point arc) and 14 rebounds but committed 11 of CKSC?s 37 turnovers (against HCHS?s 25). First-year Bartolome, in his finest game this season, also had a double-double with 12 points, 10 boards and two blocks for the Blue Dragons, who shot a miserable 6-for-17 (.353) from the foul line. Tan was the third CKSC double-figure scorer with 10. Young chalked up nine markers and seven rebounds.