By Dave Coros
THE CaféFrance Bakers did what they were supposed to do and had a pretty easy time in demolishing the University of the Philippines (UP)-Jam Liner Maroons, 94-73, on Thursday in the Philippine Basketball Association D-League Aspirants Cup at the Ynares Sports Center.
Bryan Cruz scored a game-high 15 points and Rodrigue Ebondo booked a double-double with 14 points and 12 rebounds for the Bakers, who got off to a good start in recording their third straight win to tie idle Caida Tiles at the top of the standings.
It was a lopsided contest as the Maroons offered little resistance. And the Bakers exploited it to dominate the game that saw them leading by as much as 27 points, 74-47, late in the third.
“I thought UP was complacent. I don’t know why. Maybe they didn’t prepare well for this game knowing we’re both school-based team,” CaféFrance Coach Egay Macaraya observed.
The Bakers dictated the pace early with good ball movement and impeccable shooting, and a defense that held the Maroons to 12-of-34 shooting the first 24 minutes. They also got standount performances from their biggies, who dominated the boards. Their contagious energy and hustle also kept the Maroons out of their comfort zone, reason their young, inexperienced rivals struggled with their shooting.
“Our goal coming into this game is to control UP’s bigs and deny their point guards. I thought we did a good job executing our plays,” Macaraya said.
Samboy de Leon scored 14 points, while Paul Zamar and Alvin Abundo combined for 21 points for the Bakers, who went nine-of-24 from the three-point range.
UP-Jam Liner picked its second loss in four games. Raymond Aguilar scored 14 points and Kevin Ferrer had 13 for the Maroons, who are using this tournament to toughen up for the upcoming UAAP season.
In the first game between two winless teams, Tanduay coasted to a 39-point rout of Mindanao, 95-56, to nail its first win in three tries.