Aguada, Bayamón to square off in BSN final

Joel Soriano (25) of the Santeros of Aguada defends Jalen Crutcher (20) of the Leones of Ponce during Tuesday night’s sixth game of the BSN Conference B Finals in Ponce. Soriano scored 23 points and grabbed 10 rebounds as the Santeros beat the Leones 95-89 to win the series and advance to the BSN Finals against the Vaqueros of Bayamón. Crutcher led Ponce with 20 points.

By THE STAR STAFF

The Santeros of Aguada will face the Vaqueros of Bayamón in the National Superior Basketball (BSN by its initials in Spanish) finals after defeating the Leones of Ponce 95-89 on Tuesday night in Game 6 of the Conference B Finals.

The Santeros, who won the B final series four games to two, delivered a solid team performance at Juan “Pachín” Vicéns Auditorium in Ponce led by Rigoberto Mendoza, who finished with 28 points and 10 assists. Joel Soriano contributed a double-double with 23 points and 10 rebounds, Jacob Wiley added 22 points, and Iván Gandía and Manny Camper contributed 11 points each.

The victory also marked Aguada’s second road win of the series. The Santeros had taken a 3-1 lead by winning Game 4 in Ponce, but the Leones responded in Game 5 with a win on the Santeros’ home floor to extend the series to a sixth game.

Jalen Crutcher led Ponce with 20 points, followed by Christian Negrón with 16, Thomas Robinson with 15 and Jezreel de Jesús with 11.

The best-of-seven league championship series, “La Final Brava,” begins on Sunday, Aug. 9 at Rubén Rodríguez Coliseum in Bayamón.