Defending champion DFS Galleria is back in the finals and will put its title on the line against Dollar Days.

Dollar Days took the first finals berth in the 4th Shirley's Coffee Shop Basketball League after outclassing PSS/Hoopaholics, 63-54, while DFS earned its second straight championship game appearance after routing Mobil, 93-75, last Wednesday night at the Gillette Multipurpose Gymnasium.

DFS had a jackrabbit start, taking a big 20-point lead at the end of the first period, 33-13, and never relinquished the driver's seat from thereon. Elmer Esdrelon anchored DFS' offense at the get-go, as he connected on four triples and finished the first 10 minutes of play with 16 points. Three other DFS players added at least two baskets apiece to help build the double-digit advantage.

Facing a huge deficit, Mobil spent the last three quarters of the semis match trying to catch up and it attempted repeated rallies without key players Pando Muleta (injured) and Ron Gamboa (off-island). As if its depleted lineup and limited offensive options were not enough problems, some “questionable” calls from the referees got Mobil even more frustrated.

One came in the second canto when Roland Libayan was called for a foul while jockeying for position in the rebound play against Junar Guiab with Mobil just down by 8, 32-40. After the infraction, DFS had an 8-0 windup to bring the lead back into twin digits at the break, 48-32.

Mobil sliced the lead to single digit again, 48-57, past the halfway mark of the third canto behind the 6 straight points of Marvin Rabauliman. Mobil then had a chance to move closer after a DFS miss, but Rabauliman was called for an offensive foul first before dropping a pass to his teammate on a fastbreak play. Mobil coach Marvin Deocares argued Rabauliman tried to avoid the DFS defender with his side step move and the defense was not established yet, however referee Robert Tamondong stood by with his earlier call.

The Mobil infraction shifted momentum back to DFS with Lawrence Dikito leading another short 11-4 run to give the defending champion a 68-52 advantage, entering the final canto.

Mobil then made one final push, cutting the once 20-point lead to 9, 80-71, but a baseline jumper from Junar Guiab ended the rally and DFS had the finals berth in the bag going into the last two minutes with its 15-point advantage.

The defending champion built an early lead and protected it, as they moved the ball well from the key and almost always found the open man, either at the paint or outside for short jumpers and triples. DFS converted 9 triples. Mobil got three treys from Jun Estolas and none from Zachary Babauta, who missed all his seven shots from downtown.

In the first semis game, Dollar Days also ran a patient offense and had a better start to beat PSS/Hoopaholics.

The defensive-type of game favored Dollar Days, as it held the Hoops to 7 points in the opening canto for a 14-7 lead and increased the advantage to eight at the break, 28-20.

The Hoops managed to move within two, 30-32, in the first five minutes of the third period, but Dollar Days kept its good ball movement, resulting to a couple of open shots underneath to up its lead to 9, 48-39.

Fatigue then caught up with both teams in the fourth quarter, as Dollar Days was stuck to 54 points and committed successive turnovers. However, the Hoops failed to convert those errors into points with Mel Manibusan missing two point-blank shots and Kevin Fitial and Maverick Itibus also muffing one attempt each.

Dollar Days then ended the drought with a string of five points for a 59-48, before the Hoops connected on back-to-back triples to stay afloat, 54-59. However, the Hoops ran out of time, as only 17.5 seconds were left and it was forced to give up fouls, while Dollar Days cashed in from the stripe, nailing four charities to peg the final score.

Meanwhile, winner-take-all finale between Dollar Days and DFS is set for tomorrow at 7pm.

First Game

Dollar Days 63 - Demapan 14, Talania 14, Abuel 11, I. Devero 11, Bernardo 7, Pantaleon 3, C. Devero 2.

PSS/Hoopaholics 54 - Itibus 23, Fitial 11, Manibusan 6, Lauron 4, Diaz 4, Tenorio , Lee 2, Cabrera 2.

Scoring by quarters: 14-7, 28-20, 48-39, 63-54.

Second Game

DFS Galleria 93 - Esdrelon 22, Barcinas 18, Guiab 14, Chariton 14, Lizama 14, Dikito 9, Libuw 2.

Mobil 75 - Rabauliman 29, Estolas 23, Ruluked 12, Gapor 9, Galzote 2.

Scoring by quarters: 33-13, 48-32, 68-52, 93-75.