SMEI Dominated Against OLCA: “Men’s Basketball League Champion” Title

Earned

By: Jhon Nicoz De Villa

The determined players of St. Mary’s Educational Institute rejuvenated after

reigning in the USAL Cup of 2017 15-under Men’s Basketball League led by their star
players Ivan Roi Cabesuela, Josef Matthew “JM” Collado, and Vincent Salazar who
gave directions for them to win. They recorded a total of 47 points that helped SMEI
largely to beat OLCA. The game ended with a score of 89-76, and it was held during the
25th day of January at OLCA’s gymnasium.

The two teams really prepared for the competition. They were ready to fight their
competitors. Before the game, they went through hard trainings that developed their
skills with offense and defense, their agility, and most especially, their teamwork. They
also had sincere prayers as their guide and support overhead.

The players showed support to each other through greetings and handshakes.
The game ended with a very good fight because no obstacle, even OLCA’s homecourt
as the venue, could hinder SMEI from winning. They showed their great teamwork and
the value of each player’s presence in the game.

The first three quarters remained close and tied to undergo breached noise to
advocates, 67-66: OLCA up with one point.

In the last quarter, the players started to feel the heat of the game because of the
uncertainty of who will bring home the honor. SMEI overpowers OLCA during this
quarter because the former’s key players started to heat up from the painted area and
even on the three-point one. Ivan Cabesuela tallied a combination of beautiful assists
and plays that resulted in a good team percentage for them.

JM Collado also grabbed a lot of rebounds and shot blocks that helped them to
maximize their advantage. In the crucial minutes, SMEI was able to maintain their
aggressive defense that ruined the tremendous momentum of OLCA. The final buzzer
rang and SMEI got the title with the scores 89-76.

“Masaya kami kasi una sa lahat, nagchampion kami at nagpapasalamat ako kay
God dahil ibinigay niya sa amin ang napakagandang regaling ito para sa amin,” Ivan
Roi Cabesuela, who was awarded as the MVP for scoring 20 points per game and 10
assists, happily stated.