Vic Manuel joins Zamboanga, leads Valientes to back-to-back wins in local invitational

Former PBA player Vic Manuel brought his talents to Zamboanga and led the Valientes to back-to-back wins in a local invitational tournament in Zamboanga Sibugay.

The Valientes notched its second straight victory on Tuesday after defeating De La Salle University, 72-68.

Manuel scored 10 of his 17 points in the fourth quarter, including a late triple which cut the Valientes' deficit to one, 68-67, with 1:38 remaining, and eventually sealed the win with a split from the free throw line as Zamboanga made a late 10-0 run to get the victory.

Tolomia and Italian-Maltese center Sam Deguara had seven points apiece, while Kyt Jimenez and Carl Bryan Cruz had five points each.

"First and foremost, I’m very happy for the entire team. Everyone worked hard for this win. I especially want to give credit to our veteran players, Vic Manuel, and our import, Malick Diouf, who played exceptional defense in the crucial final seconds,” said head coach Bobidick Delos Santos.

Prior to this, Manuel had 11 points in his debut as the Valientes defeated De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde, 95-91, on Monday.

“Kailangan as a veteran, kailangan i-lead natin ‘yung mga young players namin. So ‘yun, kailangan mag-step up din kami kahit veterans na kami. Nagtulong-tulong kami, especially sa defense namin kaya nakuha namin ‘yung panalo ngayon,” Manuel said on Monday.

Manuel last played for the PBA with the Terrafirma Dyip but decided not to renew his contract.

—JKC, GMA Integrated News