By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
You can never ask for a perfect ending like that.
Undefeated in the eliminations, record untainted in the playoffs. What a way to wrap up a big tournament like that, Pavia!
On April 7, 2025, the Municipality of Pavia was hailed as the first-ever Ilonggo Basketball League (IBL)- Santa Barbara Basketball and Sports Development Inc. (SBBSDI) Inter-Town 40-Up Conference kings after sweeping Arevalo in the best-of-three grand finals series.
After a convincing win in Game 1, Pavia replicated its high-level outing to end the championship series, 103-89, claiming the first-ever IBL 40-Up crown.
Arevalo delivered some rebounding runs in both championship games, spearheaded by the district’s living legend, Felino “Pusoy” Arenal Jr., but Pavia’s more balanced attack proved to be too much and wore the challengers down as the games went to the wire.
Led by Cris Loyola, one of the most decorated ballers in the Iloilo basketball scene, team Pavia personified what dominance really means after ending the elimination round with a perfect 9-0 record while also protecting their unbeaten streak until the whole playoff stage.
Loyola then capped off Pavia’s magical season by winning the tournament finals Most Valuable Player (MVP) award after a consistent two-game stretch against Arevalo.
Aside from Loyola, Pavia also boasted a pool of talented veteran players, including star point guard Adrian Dellaban, Mythical Five-member awardee Jommar Porras, Edward Alimen, Hermer Gumapal, Richard Luna, and Vil Dunganon.
Completing the whole roster of the championship team are Francis Coronel, Dave Dan Dultra, Ronjio Amen, Mark Quintilla, Frederick Hubag, Jesus Camarines III, Rey Guadaña, Gelan Escobia, Lester Gargoles, Virgilio Guelos Jr., Garry Escaniel, Raymond Escaniel, and Roy Gumban.
The 40-up Pavia hoopers would like to thank the full support of the Pavia Local Government Unit (LGU) led by Mayor Laurence Anthony Gorriceta who boosted the team from start to finish.
The Ilonggo Sports Event Management Services (ISEMS), organized and headed by Rolando Cunanan, closed out another big tournament hitting their main goal.
After a series of Inter-BPO and Inter-Company tournaments, ISEMS gained more following after successfully bringing Mav’s Phenomenal Basketball to Iloilo City, a famous basketball content creator with three million subscribers on YouTube.
“Thank you sa tanan nga nag support. ISEMS will always strive to elevate Ilonggo basketball, as we promised. Looking forward to a bigger and better Season 2! Kitakits!” said Cunanan in an exclusive interview with the Daily Guardian.
