The Second Division of Men's Basketball already has finalists, after the classification of the Castillo Driving School on Friday night. The team trained by Juan Luis Lezcano won 60 to 59 against CD Tite, a rival that sold its defeat very dearly and fought until the last second to force the third game of the elimination round. The Castillo Driving School trusted itself in the last quarter and almost paid dearly for it.
It was the Castillo Driving School that took the initiative of the match from the initial jump. Soon the locals took a comfortable victory and CD Tite was in the wake on the scoreboard. As the quarter progressed, the differences were reduced on the court, with two teams rushing in most of the actions.
With one minute left for the end of the quarter, CD Tite took the lead on the scoreboard for the first time (14-15). The visitors did not know how to take advantage of a technical foul called on Sergio Liriano, and the Castillo Driving School reached the end of the first quarter with a minimal advantage on the scoreboard (16-15).
The crazy game was the tonic of the first minutes of the second quarter. It took the two teams up to four minutes to score the first basket, with Kevin Mejía breaking the negative streak with the launch of two free throws. The Castillo Driving School was tuning up in attack as the minutes passed. With a partial of 10 to 3 in the last three minutes, it would achieve a difference of seven points at halftime. (31-24)
In the third quarter, the Castillo Driving School continued to take the initiative on the scoreboard and the match was developing in bursts. CD Tite scored several baskets consecutively and the Castillo Driving School responded with another exchange of success in the shot. The locals increased their advantage by six points at the end of the quarter, reflecting a clear 52 to 39 on the scoreboard.
The match seemed sentenced and those present thought that the last quarter was going to be a formality. They were wrong and CD Tite sold their defeat dearly. The visitors reacted and fought until the last second to try to force the third game of the semifinal. With three minutes left for the end of the match, a basket by Abraham Figueroa allowed CD Tite to lower the psychological barrier of ten points (57-49).
The coach of the Castillo Driving School was forced to ask for a time-out and get his team back into the game. The pressure on the entire court of CD Tite was becoming indigestible and the differences continued to decrease.
With 22 seconds left for the end of the match, the scoreboard reflected a tight 60 to 59 and the possession for the last attack was for CD Tite. The visitors were not at all successful in the last play of the match, and a bad selection in the shot did not allow José Daniel Jiménez to score the winning basket. The rebound was for the Castillo Driving School and at the end of the match it was reached with the score of 60 to 59.
The Castillo Driving School qualifies for the final of the Second Division of Men's Basketball and its rival will be Haría la Vuelta Arriba. The first match of the final will be played on Wednesday, May 18 at 9:00 p.m. in the Argana Sports Palace. The second match will be on Monday, May 23 in Haría and if necessary the third match would be played on Wednesday, May 25 in the Argana Sports Palace.
Technical Sheet
Castillo Driving School: Alexander Robles (4), Willy Segura (3), Pablo Blanco (9), Christian Tabares (18) and Kevin Mejía (7) ?initial quintet- José Manuel Cruz (1), Ruber Matos (2), Rudy Matos (7), Manuel González (5), Sergio Liriano (4) and José Cruz (4)
CD Tite: Benjamín Perdomo (9), Pedro Navarro (-), Cristian Prado (6), Jhonatan Prado (8) and Brayan Pérez (4) ?initial team- Abraham Jiménez (14), José Daniel Jiménez (5), Francisco Obiang (10), Alejandro de León (-), Adrián García (3)
Partial scores: 16-15, 31-24 (break) 52-39, 60-59 (final)
Referees: Guillermo Múgica and Antonio Sierra. Abraham Figueroa and Jhonatan Prado from CD Tite were eliminated in the last quarter with five personal fouls.
Incidents: Argana Sports Palace, about 75 spectators. Second match of the semifinals of the Second Division of Men's Basketball