ODM SCHOOL WARS: St. Joseph remains unbeaten, Hercor grabs much-needed win

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

The Saint Joseph Los Obreros and team Hercor Hub stood tall during the Saturday schedule of the On D’ Move (ODM) “School Wars” Roxas leg basketball tournament.

St. Joseph continued their dominance and showed that they are the team to beat after annihilating Saint John Knights, 129-44, while team Hercor outlasted Filamer Christian University (FCU), 98-93.

Fresh off a well-deserved victory over the Colegio de la Purisima Concepcion (CPC) Angels, the Los Obreros proved they still had enough gas left in the tank after pouring in another offensive clinic in front of their fans in Roxas City.

St. Joseph’s well-oiled squad immediately established a double-digit lead in the first half and outscored St. John in all four quarters.

Overwhelmed by St. Joseph’s offensive arsenal and paint presence, St. John failed to get within striking distance and had no answers despite applying defensive adjustments in the second half.

Los Obreros’ savvy scorer Placer Arricivita led the charge for the league’s only undefeated team and earned Best Player of the Game honors after finishing the game with 18 points, seven steals, and four rebounds.

In the second game, Hercor successfully weathered a resilient Filamer squad.

Every time Hercor went on an offensive run, the FCU Spirits never lost hope and came right back with their own answer that kept them within striking distance the entire game.

However, the Spirits went on an offensive drought midway in the final canto that allowed Hercor to take away the momentum and seize control of the game.

Chris Almonguera was a beast for Hercor after shouldering most of their points while finding his open teammates for easy deuces.

The hardworking Hercor star was then awarded the Best Player of the Game after top-scoring his team with 32 big points, 10 assists, and four steals.

After almost a month of blockbuster basketball action, the ODM “School Wars” Roxas leg tournament will feature the last two games of the elimination next weekend before proceeding to the highly anticipated playoffs.