Mighty Niños stretch win streak to 24

Bruce Dacia turned hot in the pivotal fourth quarter as M. Lhuillier Kwarta Padala Cebu demolished Ascof Lagundi, 87-73, and completed a sweet sweep of the eliminations in the Tournament of the Philippines First Leg at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.

Holding a slim four-point lead in the final period, Dacia put the game away for the Niños by stringing up 10 straight points that helped throw Ascof’s offense in disarray.

The win thus extended the Niños’ remarkable winning streak to 24 counting their title conquest in the Liga Pilipinas Conference III last year.

For sweeping the elims, Cebu gained a two-point bonus and may get additional 10 points provided it beats the Pascual Laboratories franchise anew this Saturday at the Emilio Aguinaldo College gym in Manila.

Dacia scored 15 points with Stephen Padilla leading the way for the Cebuanos for the third straight with 17 markers which he highlighted with five triples.

The Niños also drew solid numbers from big man Marlon Basco and ASEAN Basketball League Finals MVP Warren Ybanez, who combined for 17 points,13 boards, eight assists and three steals.

In the first game, Rob Sanz banked in a running shot with less than a second left to help Treston Laguna score a 95-93 victory over Ani-FCA

The scores:

First Game

TRESTON LAGUNA 95 — Losentes 21, Mercado 17, Mangahas 16, Sanz 9, Musni 9, Grijaldo 7, Angeles 7, Capati 4, Legaspi 3, Gloriosa 2, Ricafuerte 0, Antonio 0.
ANI-FCA 93 — Hugnatan 18, Luanzon 17, Bautista 12, Sena 10, Mirza 10, Custodio 7, Arao 7, Te 5, Dizon 4, Ong 3, Co 0.
Quarters: 15-26; 43-40; 73-68; 95-93.

Second Game

M. LHUILLIER CEBU 87 — Padilla 17, Dacia 15, Santos 13, Basco 10, Saladaga 10, Ybanez 7, Nailon 7, Magsumbol 6, Ababon 2, Cruz 0.
ASCOF LAGUNDI 73 — Aguilar 10, Leynes 9, Labagala 8, Canlas 8, Taylor 7, Gamalinda 6, Smith 6, Maliksi 5, Manuel 5, Lanete 3, Uyloan 3, Co 3, Asoro 0, Mangahas 0.
Quarters: 19-10, 47-42, 61-60, 87-73.

Games Saturday (Emilio Aguinaldo College gym)
1:30 p.m. — Treston-Laguna vs Ani-FCA (3rd place)
3:30 p.m. — M. Lhuillier Cebu vs Ascof Lagundi (Championship)