SHARKS HOLD OFF GECKOS WITH LATE PUSH

By Carmen Gogue

The Sanchez Sharks held off the George Washington Geckos 55-48 in the ISA Boys Basketball League Monday night at the Tiyan gym.

Bless Aisek scored 14 points and teammate Jace Dela Cruz added 13 points to lead the Sharks.

Opening the fourth quarter tied at 39-39, MJ Simmy found an easy bucket down in the paint to put the Sharks up by two.

Aiden Uncangco responded, sinking a wide open three to give the Geckos a one point lead 42-41.

Sanchez demonstrated good ball movement to find Aisek under the basket for two points putting the Sharks back up 43-42.

Uncangco hit another three that made the Geckos home crowd turn up as they grabbed the lead back at 45-43. Daran Treltas added one more point for GW off a made free throw to put the score at 46-43.

Aisek answered with a tough layup and two made free throws on the next play to put Sanchez up by four points 47-46. With just a few minutes left in the quarter, a technical foul on the Geckos allowed Sanchez to increase their lead to 49-46.

The Sharks were able secure a few more points from Ralph Macaldo’s free throws and MJ Simmy’s buckets in the key to snatch the win.

“Playing defense was our mentality.”

– Sharks leader Bless Aisek

Sharks Lead Early

Sanchez won possession in the tip off with Jace Dela Cruz immediately netting a three-pointer to put the Sharks on the board first. Djay Osborne made two free throws for the Geckos to put them on the board.

The Geckos struggled to get open through the Sharks ruffling defense. Utilizing their upper hand defensively, the Sharks controlled the first quarter with shots coming from all starting five players to close out the first at 18-6.

The Geckos had a change of pace adding a press defense that allowed scoring opportunities, but Sanchez maintained their steady lead closing the second quarter at 28-20.

The Geckos teamwork and press defense allowed them to tie the game at the end of the third quarter.

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