By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
The 1st Mayor Stephen Palmares Pintados de Passi Open Basketball tournament opened with a bang and was whole-heartedly embraced by the people of Passi.
Featuring 8 powerhouse teams, the opening day held four games after the opening ceremony with the people of Passi flocking to the Passi city arena to witness their basketball idols.
In the first game, the Guimaras Leopards thwarted the PNP squad, 89-74, with Jefrey “Mr. Excitement” Espinosa putting on a show offensively, tallying 30 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, and 5 steals.
The next game was a toe-to-toe affair between team XYZ/TOTO-TIA-TEN and DPWH where the Dinagyang basketball cup champions took the nail-biting win, 93-88.
Visitors from Roxas city, the Hercor College, dazzled the Passi city arena with their fluid offensive sets, trampling team JKG, 93-83.
The last game was a lopsided victory from Amistads/TEJ Builders against Oton, 103-69, with the youngster Jemar Cepriano named player of the game after contributing 24 points, 11 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals.
