Four teams fight for survival as Cesafi juniors, seniors semifinal rounds continue

Games today:

Cebu Coliseum

5:15 p.m. – CEC vs. SHS-AdC (jrs.)

6:45 p.m. – UV vs. SWU (srs.)

Four squads put their season on the line today in two sets of do-or-die games in the semifinals of the juniors and seniors divisions of the 2011 Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation Inc.  basketball tournament over at what is expected to be a raucous Cebu Coliseum.

The reigning champions Cebu Eastern College (CEC) Dragons will try to keep their title-retention bid alive when they face off against the upstart Sacred Heart School-Ateneo de Cebu (SHS-AdC) Magis Eagles in the juniors class while the nine-time champions University of the Visayas (UV) Green Lancers will try to make it to the finals for the 11th straight time when they battle the Southwestern University (SWU) Cobras.

The Dragons and the Lancers kept the fight going by logging in commanding wins in the semis last Thursday. CEC defeated the Magis Eagles, 57-52, while the Lancers came back from an early double-digit deficit to stun the Yayoy Alcoseba-mentored Cobras, 73-67. The wins nullified the twice-to-beat bonus of SHS-AdC and SWU, thus setting up today’s blockbuster matches.

The Magis Eagles will be coming in with a lot of confidence as they are coming off their fourth straight title in the Milo-backed BEST Tournament, which was held over the weekend in Roxas City (see separate story).

SHS-AdC needs every boost they can get especially with the absence of star guard Henry Asilum, who is still playing for the Energen Pilipinas national team in the FIBA Asia U-16 Championship in Vietnam.