Yee Chun Leong
BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN
HAPPY Claw Machine Corners (HCMC) secured the Propel Women's Cup title after holding on for a 50-46 win over Golden Girls on Saturday.
The result meant that they completed a sweep of the six-team competition at the BBA Court in Batu Bersurat.
Charina Caballero came up big for HCMC with a game-high of 20 points.
Karyn Ho also had a good outing with 14 to her name.
On the other hand, Tong Sing Ching paced Golden Girls with 14 points while Lin Siau Mei chipped in nine to a losing cause.
Both sides overcame a sluggish opening period which saw HCMC up 7-6.
HCMC were ahead most of the way and led by as many as 10 points.
Hong Moi Leng was a spark off the bench for six points in the second stanza to allow Golden Girls to close the deficit to 24-19 at halftime.
Each time HCMC broke away, Golden Girls came back with a response.
Back-to-back layups courtesy of Caballero made it 33-23 midway in the third frame.
She tormented the Golden Girls defence to finish with nine third quarter points.
Golden Girls trailed 40-33 to begin the decisive quarter and they picked up on their ball movement.
It proved fruitful as their improved passing allowed them to cut inside to score.
They got to within two points but failed to tie or go in front after coming up empty on three consecutive possessions.
It remained neck and neck as the game went down the wire.
Golden Girls got in front for the first time after a three-pointer by Chris Tan with 2:12 on the clock.
Sandra Lobina replied immediately at the other end with a jumper.
The stunner came with a minute left after good work by Angelyn Catalan to keep the ball alive.
She found Ti Li Ying to convert a short range baseline shot that made it a two-possession game.
Golden Girls simply ran out of time as they turned the ball over which resulted in HCMC winding down the clock to secure victory.
The earlier game saw Yokohama hang on for a 55-48 victory over Minimau.
