JOSEPH ERIOBU and Almond Vosotros emerged as the top two leading scorers three legs into the Philippine Basketball Association 3×3 Lakas Ng Tatlo tournament.
Eriobu, the Purefoods TJ Titans’ 29-year-old Filipino-Nigerian forward, showed the way in scoring during the maiden and third leg of the three-a-side tournament, while Vosotros, the top point guard of Leg 1 champion TnT Tropang Giga, booking the feat during the second leg.
The 6-foot-4 Eriobu totaled 56 points in the opening leg when the Titans finished third worth P30,000. During the third leg, he finished with an accumulative points of 46 as Purefoods reached the semifinals, but lost in the battle for third against Terrafirma.
Veteran 3×3 players Carlos De Chavez of top contender Platinum Karaoke and Meralco’s Tonino Gonzaga also made their presence felt in scoring during the first leg.
De Chavez finished second behind Eriobu with 45 points, followed by Gonzaga with 42.
TNT then showed its might in offense by occupying the next three spots—Vosotros (42), Filipino-American Jeremiah Gray (41) and Samboy De Leon (37)—eventually punctuating the Tropang Giga’s campaign by bagging the title after beating Meralco in the tournament’s first ever finals.
The 31-year-old Vosotros came back even stronger in Leg 2 when he edged Gonzaga as scoring leader, 57-50, though the Tropang Giga only finished third in the leg.
With Gonzaga leading the way, Meralco turned back guest team Platinum Karaoke for the championship.
San Miguel Beer’s Jeff Manday and Kenneth Mocon of Sista Super Sealers also joined the fray with 42 and 41 points to place at Nos. 3 and 4, respectively, while Limitless Appmasters’ Fil-Am player Brandon Ganuelas Rosser was fifth with 39 points.
Platinum Karaoke’s Karl Dehesa and Chris De Chavez finished with 38 (6th) and 37 (7th) points, as Eriobu fell to No. 8 with 32 points following the Titans’ failure to progress in the semifinals.
But Eriobu regained the scoring top spot in Leg 3 and crowded out by Terrafirma’s Dhon Reverente at second with 43 points, Mocon and Reverente’s Dyip teammate Matt Salem with 40 each, and Sista Super Sealer big man Leo De Vera at fifth with 36 points.
Michale Calisaan of NorthPort also waxed hot in the third leg with 34 points for seventh place, while the Pioneer Pro Tibay duo of Carlo Escalambre and Carlo De Chavez both finished with 32 points for eighth and ninth place, respectively.
Sista went on and won the leg at the expense of Pioneer Pro Tibay.
The tournament went on a five-day break and resumes Saturday for Leg 4 at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig City.
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