Iloilo, Narvacan post come-from-behind wins in NBTC

MANILA, Philippines – Narvacan National high School out of Candon, Ilocos Sur, and Sta. Clarita International School of Iloilo carved their name on the Mall of Asia Arena hardcourt with a pair of heart-stopping, come-from-behind wins in Day One of the 2019 Chooks to Go NBTC National Finals presented by SM.

In a game of runs, Narvacan came up with a mighty finishing kick to dispatch Isabela Colleges, 80-74.

Isabela Colleges led up to midway of the fourth period when bull-strong Mark Tagacay was stretchered out with an injury. Narvacan found its strength with a late push that saw them hold Isabela scoreless in the final minute.

Paulo Casia scored a whopping 31 points for Narvacan while teammate Vincent Saldua backstopped him with 22 points.

In the other game, Sta. Clarita International School also came from behind to defeat Zamboanga Del Sur National High School, 99-88.

Sta. Clarita, plagued by poor decision making and poor shooting, found their strength when Paul Fallarco was ejected from the game. Down by five, 86-81 with 2:26 to play, Sta. Clarita dropped an 18-2 finishing kick where Zamboanga was unable to cross to their side of the court in the last five possessions.

Ralph Bajon led Sta. Clarita with a monster 33 points. Steven Tono and center Jemar Cepriano added 19 and 17 points, respectively.

Day One of the NBTC National Finals is classification day with 16 teams will receive their final rankings in the 32-team tournament.