Mariana Resort gained back-to-back wins after outclassing Pacific Islands Club, 80-71, in the curtain raiser of the Emon Lodge No. 179 Brotherhood Basketball League 2013/Docomo Pacific Cup last Tuesday night at the Gilbert C. Ada Gymnasium.

Mariana Resort, which made it into the win column last week after topping the Ol’Aces 80-77, prevailed in the battle of two hotels after showing consistency on offense in the first three quarters and connecting more triples. Mariana Resort nailed 20-plus points in the first three periods to offset the 27-point production of PIC in the final canto.

Elgene Mangali jump-started Mariana Resort’s offense, firing two triples and getting 10 points in the first period for their 21-14 advantage. Mariana Resort kicked off the first canto with a triple from Marlon Sison and also began the second with a trey, courtesy of Jawn Joyner. Joyner went on to add one more shot from downtown and Mariana Resort finished the half with back-to-back treys, as Mangali hit his third basket from beyond the arc. Mangali and Joyner combined for 24 points at halftime to lift Mariana Resort to a 43-30 lead.

PIC faced a double-digit deficit in the first 20 minutes of play, as it earned most of its points from the foul line and failed to score a single triple. James Abuy finally canned a triple in the third canto, but still PIC played a so-so offense, making only 14 points.

In contrast, Mariana Resort had another 20-plus output, drilling 22. Leo Galarse, who was held to 2 points in the first half, found his mark in the third, scoring 9 points, while Mangali added one more triple to widen the gap, 65-44.

PIC tried to mount a comeback in the fourth quarter, but still fell short, as Galarse and Joyner provided the needed baskets to secure the win for Mariana Resort. Joyner finished with 18 points, just 2 markers shy of Mangali’s game-high 20 markers. Galarse contributed 15. Abuy, Bart Demapan, and Nevin Salem had 14 markers apiece for PIC (1-2), which made only two triples against the eight of Mariana Resort.

Mariana Resort 80 — Mangali 20, Joyner 18, Galarse 14, Fitial 8, Sison 5, Wesley 4, Paraiso 3, Sanciangco 2, Saturno 2, Montes 2.

Pacific Islands Club 71 — Abuy 14, Demapan 14, Ne. Salem 14, Barbo 12, Hambrose 8, Duenas 7.

Scoring by quarters: 21-14, 43-30, 65-44, 80-71.