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| Jose Blazquez leads Lubao's charge to the main draw of the Cebu Masters. FIBA |
CEBU CITY--There will still be two Filipino teams in the FIBA 3x3 World Tour Cebu Masters main tournament.
Lubao MCFASolver earned its place in the main draw by sweeping the qualifying draw that kicked off the Cebu Masters on Saturday at the SM Seaside City Activity Center.
Despite settling for layups and dunks almost all game long in both of its two occasions in the QD due to its struggles from deep, Lubao's defense shone brightly in both their games.
Lubao first held Taichung to just five points in the final 8:21 of the game after conceding the same number of points in almost 100 seconds as the Pampagueno squad walked away with a 19-10 win.
Then against Auckland of New Zealand, Lubao also bucked a slow start and opened a 16-6 lead.
Auckland, which ousted Taichung from contention with a 22-7 win earlier Saturday, tried to force a comeback after five straight points cut the lead to five, 16-11, but Jose Blazquez hit a split from the foul line to eventually ice the 17-11 win for Lubao.
Lubao completes the cast in Pool D, which also consists of Miami, featuring former NBA player Jimmer Fredette, and Ulaanbaatar MMC Energy.
In the process, Lubao, formerly known as Quezon City Wilcon Depot, became the first team from the PBA 3x3 to clinch a spot in the main draw of a FIBA 3x3 World Tour tournament.
Follow him on X: @IvanSaldajeno
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