By Robert Balajadia

The Harmon Loop Dental Toothfairies, the former Sushi Rockets, have claimed their second straight GBA Title, beating the MVP Stars 92-82 in Game 2 of what would be season finale Tuesday night at the UOG Calvo Field House to conclude GBA Season 2.

It was a must win for the Stars after dropping Game 1 Sunday, but the Toothfairies also entered the night believing they too were in a win-or-go-home situation.

“We came into tonight with the mindset that there was no Game 3. We wanted to win it all tonight and we came out strong and with a lot of energy. We played great team basketball tonight with multiple people hitting double figures,” said Earvin Jose.

After trailing by double digits for majority of Game 1, Game 2 was a completely different script for the Toothfairies as they repeatedly attacked the Stars in the paint.

Center Maks Kepwe was awarded the game MVP after scoring 27 points and grabbing 9 rebounds to lead the Toothfairies. Earvin Jose added 22 points in win with at least five players reaching double digits.

The Toothfairies overcame a big night from the MVP Stars Joe Blas’ 34 points and 11 rebounds and the sharp shooting of JP Cruz that led to a 26-point night. After Cruz erupted for 15 points in the opening period, the Toothfairies amped up their defensive pressure to cool off what could’ve been an even bigger night for Cruz.

“We can never let up on JP and Joe. We added new schematics while keeping bodies on those two guys which really helped us pick up these two wins,” said Jose.

MVP’s Darren Hechanova suffered injuries last game and started the contest, but went to the bench almost immediately after a couple of possessions and did not return to the game. MVP also lost center Gerard Jones before halftime, going down with an ankle injury and he too did not return.

Gameflow

Kepwe scored the first 10 points of the game for the Toothfairies though they still trailed through one quarter 31-21 after Cruz’s hot start.

The Toothfairies then held MVP to just 9 points in the 2nd period after pouring in a 26 point quarter with Kepwe once again hitting 10 points, giving him 20 points by the half.

MVP came out strong after halftime, eventually cutting the lead to six points in the period after Cruz converted on a deep ball. Blas started to get his game rolling by converting on two and-one plays in succession to get within 63-59. A late foul on a three pointer sent Merwin Martin to the stripe to add points for a 65-59 lead through three quarters for the Toothfairies.

The Toothfairies took complete control in the 4th period with James Stake converting an and-one play in the lane to end a 6-0 MVP run, pushing the lead back to double digits 79-69 at the five minute mark. A three pointer by Dezdin Fikes in the final three minutes made it interesting 79-72, but Kepwe, Jose and Kirk Long closed the book on GBA’s Season 2 with big buckets.

“It was way more competitive than last season and it definitely showed. We were tested after dropping to the 5th seed and going on a bad losing streak. Coming out of that playoff road where we had to beat Phoenix and the #1 seed Team Justice I had a really strong feeling we could take it all the way,” added Jose.