THE three-time defending champions University of the Visayas (UV) Green Lancers regained a share of second place in the standings after they mauled the Cebu Institute of Technology-University (CIT-U) Wildcats, 85-69 in the Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation Inc. (Cesafi) men's basketball tournament at the Cebu Coliseum on Saturday, October 26, 2019.
The win shoved UV into a tie for second place in the standings alongside the University of San Carlos Warriors at 7-3 (win-loss), making the race for the top two spots even tighter. The top two finishers at the end of the elimination round will earn a twice-to-beat advantage in the semifinal round.
USC was still battling the University of Cebu Webmasters of this writing.
Froilan Maglasang set the tone early, hitting four three-pointers in the first canto to give UV a 28-14 lead. UV did not let off the gas pedal and remained ahead until the game's final buzzer.
Athletic big man Melvin Butohan had 20 points and seven rebounds to spearhead UV's attack and help snap their two-game slump in the second round.
Michael Maestre and Maglasang ended up with 12 points each for UV.
Karl Malone Ventura led CIT-U, which plunged further down to 2-7, with 15 points while John Jabonete had 14 markers.
