After four trips to the final that all ended in heartbreak, Toros del Valle finally got it right. The Cali side beat two-time defending champions Paisas de MedellÃn 78-73 in Game 4 to clinch the best-of-five final 3-1 and win the Liga Señal Colombia de Baloncesto Profesional title the first championship in the club's history.
Toros did it the hard way, on the road at a raucous Coliseo Ivan de Bedout, and they set the tone immediately.
Hayner Montano (190-G-1997) opened with a three and the visitors ripped off a 15-0 run, surging 18-2 ahead inside the first quarter and taking it 28-16. Paisas, roared on by their crowd, fought back to within 49-39 at the break and edged the third quarter to trim it to 61-56, but Bernardo Fitz Gonzalez's deep, relentless rotation always had an answer.
The fourth quarter delivered the drama a final deserves. Paisas drew level at 68-68 and
Davion Bailey (193-G, college:
UIW)'s layup put the hosts ahead with 50 seconds left, prompting a Toros timeout. The decisive play belonged to
James Montgomery (203-F-2001, college:
Barry): the American hauled in an offensive rebound off a missed
Emmanuel Payton-Clottey (183-PG-1997, college:
FSU) attempt, spun through two defenders and scored with a foul, then sank the free throw to make it 75-73 with 47 seconds remaining.
Michaell Jackson (198-F-1987) missed an open three at the other end, and
Emmanuel Payton-Clottey iced it from the line for the 78-73 final. Montgomery finished with 11 points and 18 rebounds.
The series belonged to
Saquan Singleton (198-G-1998, college:
GMU), named Finals MVP after averaging 13.2 points, 8.5 rebounds and 5.5 assists across the four games, a run that began with a triple-double in Toros' overtime Game 1 win. Toros, the regular-season pacesetters at 14-2, had stormed to a 2-0 series lead with a 102-101 overtime thriller and a 110-80 rout in Cali before Paisas won Game 3 to stay alive.
For Paisas, coached by Juan Nardini, it is the end of a reign: the back-to-back champions had been chasing a historic three-peat, only to be toppled by a Toros side that had waited a long time for this. Runners-up in 2017, 2019, 2020 and 2024-I, the Cali club are champions at last.
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