Robert Balajadia 

The highly anticipated Guam International Basketball Tournament (GIBT) tipped off Monday evening at the UOG Calvo Field House with four teams ready to compete for a title. The Men’s National Team opened up the night with a game against UOG while the Philippines teams University of the East and National University squared off.

Men’s Nationals 100, UOG Tritons 37

A new look Men’s National Team didn’t look at all our of sync as the faster and much taller National Team proved too much for the UOG Tritons.

Newest addition Curtis Washington poured in 15 points, eight of the Team’s first 10 points, to lead the National Team without needing to play more than two quarters. Washington did most of his scoring in the paint, but added a three pointer to prove his range.

For his debut with the National Team, Washington felt their first go as a unit after summer training was special.

“It’s good to have the team all together since we’re all from different places. There was a lot of team work out there and not a lot of selfish play. We all wanted to see each other succeed and everyone was just having fun,” said Washington.

The National Team put the clamps down on the Tritons in the first period only allowing five total points. By halftime, the lead increased to 52-18 with the Nationals emptying their bench.

Andrew Carlos led the Tritons with 13 points, doing most of his work in the second quarter. Ben Borja, Russ Wessley, and Earvin Jose each posted double figures in scoring with Wessley adding eight boards.

Though the tournament is just getting started, The National Team already proves to be a threat both inside and out which has players like Washington optimistic.

“The sky is the limit for this team. We still don’t have every single piece that we could have had, but this team is built to go really far,” stated Washington.

Other game

University of the East 90, National University 82