The Province of Negros Occidental and Valiant Bank got their semifinal campaigns off to a winning start, although they had to go through anxious moments before securing crucial victories in the Tan Kek Pin Cup Memorial Basketball Tournament at the Po Hang Gym.

Rex Bayer held Province together when they mounted a late rally that snatched a 67-64 come-from-behind win over Davies Paint-Probac, before Valiant Bank repeated over defending champion BBC, 102-93, in overtime.

Province and Valiant could arrange a championship duel if they beat BBC and Davies Paint but a loss could pave the way for virtual knockout matches on the next playdate. Both matches were set late yesterday.

One of the most popular players in the local collegiate scene in the 1990s, Bayer, the Immuvit player of the game, finished with 21 points. His lay-up from the baseline with 3.8 seconds left sealed the win, after Province played catch up almost all game long.

Frederick Premaylon gave Province its first taste lead at 65-64, with less than a minute left, following Mark Ramos' miss from the free throw line.

With Peewee Demonteverde and Ariston Sillana holding the fort, Davies Probac zoomed to a 25-12 advantage in the first period, before Bayer and Premaylon closed the gap at halftime, 35-28. Erik Uy kept Province at bay in the final period but the resistance grew stronger by the minute and with 2:04 left, Ramos nailed a jumper from the top of the key to cut the deficit, 62-61.

Bert Celis and Ramos added 7 points apiece for Province, losing finalist two years ago.

Demonteverde had 14 points, while Ryan Concha and Sillana contributed 11 and 8, respectively.

In a battle of two teams that secured automatic semifinals berth, Valiant drew a giant effort from center Leo Abao, who contained BBC's main man Robert Buñol while doing some damage in the offensive end.

Abao, who was declared Immuvit player of the game, came up with 11 points. His imposing presence inside the paint made the difference as he limited Buñol, the reigning MVP, to just 8 points.

It was another balanced offensive performance from Valiant, which drew 13 points each from Ryan Hugnatan and Johnson Salazar and 11 more from Mark Descutido.

After forcing Valiant into a five-second inbounds violation, BBC had the golden chance to win in regulation but Buñol and Lemuel Unabia missed.

Joebert Pastias carried the scoring load for BBC, scoring 6 straight points to tie the count at 83-all, before the wild finish that saw both teams flub one opportunity after another in the final 1:08.

Valiant jumped to an early lead in the overtime period, getting points from Carl John Oquindo and Carlo De la Torre, before finally finishing off BBC with steals that they translated into free throw conversions.

Pastias posted 13 points, while Lemuel Unabia 10, Pol Pineda and Rico Cabato added 10 apiece. *CPT

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