Misamis Oriental bags Liga Pilipinas national title by beating MLKP-Cebu Niños in finals
Cagayan de Oro— If the Misamis Oriental Meteors were to ever get another championship, it might as well be at the expense of their age-old rivals the M. Lhuillier Kwarta Padala-Cebu Niños.
This indeed they accomplished last Sunday night, which turned out to be one magical evening after they turned on the intensity in the fourth period to down the Niños, 66-60, in the winner-take-all finals of the SMC Liga Pilipinas Super Leg held here at the Xavier University gym.
The Niños of head coach Raul “Yayoy” Alcoseba and team owner Michel Lhuillier and the Meteors of Misamis Oriental Governor Oscar Moreno have been embroiled in a bitter rivalry, which has seen them meet one another in each and every finals of the Liga Pilipinas.
The Niños have won three of the last four crowns in the league, including last year’s title, which they captured in a grueling five-game series, 3-2.
However, the Meteors made sure that the trophy was not going anywhere but here as they withstood an early surge by the Niños and turned on their jets when it counted the most, withering the Niños’ own morale in the process en route to claiming their second championship. The last title MisOr got was two years ago.
The Niños had control of the lead for the first 25 minutes of the match, which included a nine-point bulge, 22-13, during the early part of the second period. Cebu remained in front, 45-38, after a three-pointer by Mark Ababon but the Meteors came storming back with a 10-0 blast, sparked by former University of San Jose-Recoletos wingman Lyndon Gudez and Rudy Lingganay, whose free-throws put them ahead, 48-45.
The Meteors continued their assault at the start of the final frame. Holding a 64-60 lead with just 1:05 remaining, the Niños had one last shot as Nat Cruz got fouled with 42 seconds left, sending him to the free-throw line for two crucial freebies. Cruz crumbled under pressure and missed both attempts paving the way for the Meteors to the title.
Lingganay topped the Meteors with 10 points and four rebounds while Neil Raneses was then named as the Super Leg Most Valuable Player (MVP).
