By The Star Staff
The Caguas Criollos became the champions of the National Superior Basketball (BSN by its initials in Spanish) league on Friday night, defeating the Manatí Bears 96-81 at Roger Mendoza Coliseum in Caguas.
“I just thank God for keeping us healthy and leading us here. It is a team effort, from top to bottom,” said Travis Trice after receiving the MVP award. “We have the best franchise, the best managers, the best players and the best fans, who were great for us tonight. Simply grateful.”
The Criollos dominated the seventh game from start to finish. They effectively put Manatí to sleep in the third quarter, outscoring the Bears 26-13 to set up the eventual 15-point margin of victory.
Christian “Cuco” López and Onzie Branch were key on both ends of the court during their team’s first three series victories. On Friday night, two bench players were added to that list, Alexander Kappos and Christian Pizarro, who finished in double figures and had extremely important minutes, helping the Criollos extend their advantage.
Alexander Kappos led the way for Caguas with 22 points, including four 3-pointers, three rebounds, two assists. Big man Akil Mitchell added another double-double to his personal tally with 17 points and 15 rebounds. Louis King finished with 13 points and seven rebounds and Pizarro and Travis Trice scored 11 points each.
For Manatí, Alex Morales finished with 25 points and eight rebounds, followed by Cheick Diallo with a double-double of 12 points and 10 rebounds. Jihvvan Jackson also scored 12 points, while Norris Cole had an offensive night to forget, scoring 10 points on 21% shooting from the field, and dishing out seven assists.
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