THE ENERGEN Pilipinas squad moved closer towards retaining the title they won two years ago after they thwarted Malaysia, 84-65, for their third straight win in the Southeast Asian Basketball Association Under-18 Championships in Singapore.
The victory pushed the Philippine squad to within a win away from repeating as champions once again in this tournament.
In 2010, current Ateneo Blue Eagles Kiefer Ravena led the country to the title and all signs appear to be pointing towards another trophy for the national squad.
More importantly, the win allowed the team to qualify for the 22nd FIBA Asia Under-18 Championships, which will be held in Ulan Bator, Mongolia later this year. The top three finishers in the Seaba tilt earn tickets to the tournament.
The final score did not reflect how close the game was in the first half as thePhilippine team led by just three after the opening 10 minutes of action and settled for a one-point advantage at the turn.
They needed a superb effort from the entire team, led by the 16 points of Mario Bonleon, to pull away in the second half and turn the match into a rout.
JJ Alejandro added 13 while former Cebu Eastern College juniors standout Mark Olayon had 12 markers. /Correspondent Jonas Panerio