Avenido-less Skyforce trips Naughty Needlez
MANILA, Philippines -- Skyforce, sans Leo Avenido, fended off Naughty Needlez' final push and bagged a 91-84 victory on Friday in the 2013 Danny Espiritu Cup Basketball tournament at Letran Gym.
Skyforce, which is shaping up to be this year's toughest contender, squandered an 11-point lead early in the fourth quarter, but recovered in time to zoom away with a fourth victory.
From 77-66 with 8:02 to play, Skyforce saw its lead turn into an 81-82 deficit with unstoppable Warren Ybañez unleashing consecutive triples for Naughty Needlez.
But Ronjay Enrile, who scored 17, was there to extinguish Naughty Needlez' momentum and carry Skyforce to safety with a nine-point lead with 21 ticks left.
Former Jose Rizal Heavy Bomber Floyd Dedicatoria, Skyforce's most consistent scorer, led with 19 markers.
The undermanned Naughty Needlez, which only had eight players last Friday, fell to its third straight loss but had flashes of dominance early in the game and even led by 10.
Ybañez sizzled with 27 points, and dished out 11 assists while Vaughn Canta added 16 rebounds and 10 boards for Naughty Needlez.
The scores:
Skyforce 91 -- Dedicatoria 19, Enrile 17, Sanders 13, Allera 10, Vizcarra 9, Sotto 8, Vergara 5, Sta. Cruz 4, Caceres 2, Misolas 2, Sta. Maria 2, Capistrano 0, Tan 0, Salansang 0.
Naughty Needlez 84 -- Ybañez 27, Canta 16, Espinosa 11, Hall 11, Aguilar 9, Cunanan 8, Martinez 2, Manalo 0.
Quarters: 19-26, 52-41, 71-62, 91-84.
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