FRIARS TOO MUCH FOR SHARKS, TAKE TOP SPOT IN LEAGUE

By Paradis Jolie Fejerang

After overtaking the George Washington Geckos’ second seed ranking for the 2025 ISA/IIAAG boys basketball standings, the Father Duenas’s Friars were just waiting for Friday’s game against Simon Sanchez with the mindset of securing their top spot.

The undefeated Sharks kept a valiant effort only a couple points behind the Friars through to the half, but as the third quarter began and FD started subbing in their heavy-hitting players, the gap between scores widened to end the night with an overwhelming 37-point difference as the game concluded with the Friars winning big 85-48.

To much of the intrigue of FD supporters, the game started off with heat as it constantly seemed as though the Sharks might be able to pull ahead while leading athletes of the Friars’ team took the first half to rest easy on the sideline.

With who are known to be the regular starters taking some time off, Player of the Game Mason Whitaker noted how impressed he was with himself and his peers’ abilities to take charge and still keep the Sharks at bay. “Our starters are really…exceptional players,” he said. “Every now and then other people have to step up and show what they can do…I think that’s why I got more playing time today.”

As the junior Whitaker refers to his teammates as able to prove they can ‘man up’ during this game, it took the Sharks’ appetite to defeat their opponents to make the game interesting. With a few less players and the intimidation of taking on the Friars on their home court, Sanchez’s offensive team pushed early as they had the Friar defense frenzied up until the half as the second quarter ended with a close score of 26 to the Friars against Sanchez’s 20.

Post-half, the Sharks saw the unfortunate disadvantage to FD’s top dogs having a breather early on. While Sanchez did their best to keep up, it was nothing once Friar Noah Tenorio stepped onto the court revitalizing not just the game, but his teammates as even those who had been playing seemed to perk up with cleaner passes and overall higher energy. The inclusion of more playing time for David Del Carmen, Noah Cruz, and Colin Baker joining Tenorio meant an impactful third quarter it became clear that the Friars were going to come out with the win as the score gap increased from a difference of six points to a difference of over thirty. With the most points in the game coming from the third quarter, Tenorio and Baker leading the Friars in points earned. 

Despite his team’s faltering energy and a clear frustration shadowing the Sharks, Sanchez standout Atni Kasuta held fast. Even with the breach shown on the scoreboards, Kasuta led the Sharks to a steady increase in points scored per quarter for the Sharks as he was able to attain the most points scored from both teams at 16, and missing none of eight free throws.

Still, the undefeated Friars came out on top and will be moving into the top seed position and adding one loss to the Sharks’ standings. 

Whitaker, who was just short of Kasuta’s leading score, is quite content with his performance after what he felt was an intense game. “All of the boys, they come out and they play [well],” shared Whitaker. “Everyone [has] been playing by the rules and getting the work done – it’s just nice to see it come together.”

Next up, the Friars will be travelling down to meet the Southern Dolphins on Tuesday. Meanwhile, the Sharks will stay in Mangilao for what should be an exciting matchup against the Geckos. 

OTHER GAMES

St. Paul 118, CTECH 24

Guam High 48, Harvest 36

Okkodo 61, Notre Dame 58

GW 71, Tiyan 46