SMF shows no mercy, creams Bayani

SMF-Seabridge cagers entered with their game faces on and lambasted Bayani, 123-84, while powerhouse Visminda-Country House won without even breaking a sweat in the ongoing 2004 UFO-San Miguel Cup at the Gilbert C. Ada Gymnasium on Sunday.

SMF dominated all facets of the match, out rebounding their opponents 51-43 while swiping 22 steals compared to Bayani’s 10.

The game was close in the opening minutes as Bayani fought hard, and behind a combined 12-point effort by big man Tim Paez and Manny Rabasto, were down by just 4 points after the first quarter, 21-25.

SMF, however, would begin to chip away in the second period, outscoring Bayani, 26-23, to sport a 7-point halftime advantage, 51-44.

Things began to fall apart for Bayani at the start of the second half as they began to shoot blank bullets and were limited to just 18 points.

With Bayani experiencing setbacks at the offensive end, SMF seized the golden opportunity, kicked into higher gear, and sank shot after shot to widen their lead to double-digits. Sonny Lerio and Giovanni Pardinan were in a zone of their own and lit up the scoreboard for a combined 16 points to fuel the flaming run.

The route was on as SMF continued to run on all cylinders, with Gary Cayetano sizzling for 11 of his 16 points in the final stanza.

Rabasto tried to bring his squad closer with a desperation effort in the final 10 minutes, but had little support and Bayani had to settle with the disappointing loss.

Lerio finished with a game-high 25 points to lead SMF while Pardinan added 18, 7 boards, and 4 assists. Jimmy Sison also had a solid outing with 13 points, 7 assists, and 5 steals. Leo Itaas also chipped in with 11 points.

Rabasto scored a team-high 23 points and had 4 steals for Bayani, while Paez powered his way for 16 points and a game-high 16 rebounds.

Visminda, for its part, won after LIPS-Jam Construction failed to suit up enough players.

SMF 123—Lerio 25, Pardinan 18, Cayetano 16, Sison 13, L. Itaas 11, Moises 9, Demegillo 8, Fernandez 6, Banatasa 4, Delfin 4, Bartosis 4, J. Itaas 3, Elayda 2.

Bayani 84—Rabasto 23, Paez 16, Navalta 11, Tan 11, Laitan 9, Villegas 4, Guzman 3, Agbanlog 3, Aglubat 2, Pineda 2.

Scoring by quarters: 25-21, 51-44, 79-62, 123-84.