Jared Bahay, Central Visayas set up Palarong Pambansa title clash vs NCR

MANILA, Philippines – Jared Bahay and Central Visayas will get a crack at defending champion National Capital Region for the Palarong Pambansa secondary boys’ basketball crown.

Bahay delivered in the pivotal third quarter and steered Central Visayas to a come-from-behind 61-49 victory over Davao Region in their semifinal clash at the Marist School Marikina gym on Friday, August 4.

Playing spot minutes in the first half, the Gilas Boys standout unloaded 9 of his 13 points in the third period as Central Visayas turned a 30-30 halftime tie to a 49-39 lead en route to the win that propelled them to the final.

Bahay – the Sacred Heart School (SHS)-Ateneo de Cebu star who has committed to play for the UP Fighting Maroons in the UAAP – unloaded 4 straight points for a 38-30 advantage then drained a trey to give his side a 45-34 cushion.

Alden Paul Cainglet backstopped Bahay with 13 points, while Rezald Joshua Dacalos also produced 13 points for Central Visayas, which is represented by SHS-Ateneo.

Randy Gimena and Bon Ervin Daja paced Davao Region with 11 and 10 points, respectively.

Central Visayas looks to complete its stellar run as it advanced to the gold-medal match set on Saturday, August 5, at the Marikina Sports Center against an NCR side that showed vulnerability in its narrow semifinal escape.

Bannered by the core of the NU Bullpups, NCR squandered a double-digit lead but hacked out 76-69 win over Central Luzon to keep its title-repeat bid alive.

Trailing 64-72 with only 1:20 minutes left, Central Luzon threatened a comeback when it cut its deficit to 69-72 and looked on the cusp of bridging the gap closer after Juancho Palanca missed a short stab for NCR.

But lucky breaks favored NCR, with Central Luzon bungling its chance at making it a one-point game and turning the ball over in the next possession.

Sean Solomon and Alnhumaeri Usop scored back-to-back buckets for NCR inside the final 30 seconds to put the nail in the coffin.

NCR drew steady scoring performances from Carl Alfanta and Elijah Yusi, who netted 21 and 17 points, respectively, while Palanca chimed in 14 points.

Russel Ogana scored 18 points to lead Central Luzon, which fell short of a return trip to the finale after battling NCR four years ago for the crown. – Rappler.com