PBA-DL: Cagayan Valley Rising Suns stun Informatics Icons in D-League opener

Cagayan Valley Rising Suns head coach Alvin Pua gave a sigh of relief at the end of the first game of the PBA Developmental League's 2012-13 Aspirants Cup. "Welcome ko na siguro ito sa D-League," he said. One conference after their debut, Pua's team finally notched their first victory, an 89-85 win over one of the league's new teams, the Informatics Icons, Tuesday at the FilOil Flying V Arena.   "Last year 0-9 kami pero sana tuluy-tuloy na ang magandang performance ng mga bata," Pua added. The Rising Suns played from behind for most of the game, but they were able to take the lead in the third quarter and quell repeated runs from the Icons in the fourth period. Cagayan Valley tightened up their defense in the fourth quarter which led to nine turnovers for the Icons. Point guard Eric Acuna struggled bringing down the ball for Informatics, which enabled the Rising Suns to score on multiple fast break opportunities. Former DLSU Green Archer Joshua Webb capitalized off another Informatics turnover to score a wide open la-yup with only 2:19 left in the game to give his team an 83-74 lead. The Icons mounted a comeback late in the game thanks largely to the exploits of Marvin Hayes, Carl Bryan Cruz, and Roser Mangahas, as the trio combined to cut their deficit to two, 87-85, with 18 seconds to go. However, the Icons botched their last possession. which led to a James Forrester lay-up on the other end to seal the deal for the Rising Suns. The Informatics Icons had more weapons in their team but they were out-worked and out-hustled down the stretch. They were also unable to break a 1-2-2 press employed by the Rising Suns. It was actually the Icons who played better to start the game to the delight of the hundreds of their fans who trooped to the San Juan Arena. Marvin Hayes sank a three ball at the buzzer of the first quarter to give the Icons a 27-20 lead. In the second quarter though, FEU product Ping Exciminiano and the Fil-Canadian Forrester combined for 13 points to trim the Cagayan Valley lead to a mere point, 43-42. The Rising Suns finally broke through when Exciminiano sank a three point shot at the 8:27  mark of the third to grab a 47-44 lead. The two teams exchanged multiple triples in the period, with Petron Blaze Boosters practice player Moncrief Rogado sinking a couple for Informatics and Adrian Celada doing the same for Cagayan Valley. Rogado led all scorers with 27 points while Hayes backed him up with 22 points albeit in a losing effort. The high-scoring Informatics duo combined for nine triples in the game but Rogado spent the last minutes of the game on the bench as he injured his shin. Exciminiano compiled a double-double of 20 points and 10 rebounds for the Rising Suns, while Arellano Chiefs past and present, Celada and Forrester respectively, had 15 each. - AMD, GMA News The scores: Cagayan Valley 89: Exciminiano 20, Forrester 15, Celada 15, Webb 11, Lao 9, Poligrates 7, Bringas 5, Melano 4, Bartolo 3, Chiong 0, Dela Cruz 0, Macuha 0 Informatics 85: Rogado 27, Hayes 22, Bautista 7, Doligon 7, Mangahas 6, Benitez 6, Cruz 6, Carlos 4, Sanghera 0, Acuna 0 Quarter scores: 20-27, 42-43, 68-66, 89-85