LNB Round 5 (Regular Season): Indios outlast Metros

Here is the last round review presented by Job Market.

The biggest surprise took place in San Francisco where host Indios (3-2) edged league's leader Metros (4-2) 108-105 on Wednesday evening. It ended at the same time the four-game winning streak of Metros. Indios made 18-of-21 free shots (85.7 percent) during the game. They looked well-organized offensively handing out 26 assists. The best player for the winners was Luismal Ferreiras (200-2003) who had a double-double by scoring 20 points and 17 rebounds. Panamanian guard Luis Rodriguez (198-1999, college: UNLV) chipped in 23 points and 5 assists. Juan Guerrero (203-1993) produced 24 points and 8 rebounds for the guests. Both coaches used bench players in such tough game. Indios moved-up to third place, which they share with Caneros and Leones. Metros at the other side still keep top position with two games lost. They were joined at the leadership position by Marineros who have the same record. Metros will play next round against league's leader Marineros trying to make it back to the top of the standings. Indios will try to continue on its current victory against seventh ranked Reales in La Vega.
The game had a very big importance for fourth-ranked Marineros as it allowed them to take a leadership position after previous leader's (Metros) loss. Marineros defeated second-ranked Caneros in Puerto Plata 94-80. It was a key game for the top position in the league. Forward Andersson Garcia (201-2000, college: Texas A&M) orchestrated the victory by scoring 8 points, 10 rebounds and 13 assists. Carlos Carela contributed with 21 points and 5 assists for the winners. Eusebio Suero answered with 19 points and 5 rebounds for Caneros. Both coaches tested many bench players which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. As mentioned above they are at the top of the standings, which they share with Metros. Caneros at the other side dropped to the third place with two games lost. They share the position with Indios and Leones. Caneros will play next round against strong Leones trying to get back on the winning streak. Marineros will try to continue on its current victory against second ranked Metros at Santiago.
A very close game took place in Santiago between Metros and Soles. First ranked Metros (4-2) got a very close home victory over 7th ranked Soles (1-5). Metros managed to escape with a 2-point win 85-83 on Sunday evening. Host team only slightly avoided a big embarassment. Adris De Leon stepped up and scored 16 points and 5 assists for the winners. Jose Familia responded with 15 points and 9 rebounds. Both coaches allowed to play bench players in such tough game. Metros have a solid series of four victories in a row. They maintain first place with 4-2 record, which they share with Marineros. Soles lost third consecutive game. They dropped to the bottom position with five games lost. Metros will meet at home league's leader Marineros in the next round and it will be for sure the game of the week. Soles will play against Titanes (#6) in San Cristobal and it may be a tough game between close rivals.

Other games of round 5 were quite predictable and ended without any surprises. Here they are:
Indios crushed Caneros in San Francisco 87-67. Leones beat Titanes at home 85-73. Bottom-ranked Reales won against Soles on the opponent's court 79-70.



Metros - Soles 85-83

A very close game took place in Santiago between Metros and Soles. First ranked Metros (4-2) got a very close home victory over 7th ranked Soles (1-5). Metros managed to escape with a 2-point win 85-83 on Sunday evening. Host team only slightly avoided a big embarassment. Metros looked well-organized offensively handing out 22 assists. Point guard Adris De Leon (180-1984, college: EWU) stepped up and scored 16 points and 5 assists for the winners and Juan Guerrero (203-1993) chipped in 13 points and 6 rebounds. Center Jose Familia (201-1998) responded with 15 points and 9 rebounds and swingman Luis Martinez (196-2000) scored 16 points and 6 rebounds. Four Metros and five Soles players scored in double figures. Both coaches allowed to play bench players in such tough game. Metros have a solid series of four victories in a row. They maintain first place with 4-2 record, which they share with Marineros. Soles lost third consecutive game. They dropped to the bottom position with five games lost. Metros will meet at home league's leader Marineros in the next round and it will be for sure the game of the week. Soles will play against Titanes (#6) in San Cristobal and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Soles: F.Pichardo 17+3reb, L.Martinez 16+6reb+3ast, J.Familia 15+9reb+2ast, D.Carrasco 12+7reb+1ast, J.Salazar 11+3reb+5ast, O.Ferreira 6+2reb+2ast
Metros: A.De Leon 16+3reb+5ast, J.Matos 15+5reb+1ast, B.Mendez 13+5reb+2ast, J.Guerrero 13+6reb+2ast, T.Holloway 9+2reb+6ast, B.Francis 9+4reb+2ast

Caneros - Indios 67-87

There was a minor upset in La Romana where second-ranked Caneros (3-2) were crushed by sixth ranked Indios (3-2) 87-67 on Sunday. Indios looked well-organized offensively handing out 23 assists comparing to just 7 passes made by Caneros' players. Naturalized American forward Edgar Sosa (189-1988, college: Louisville) stepped up with a double-double by scoring 17 points and 10 assists for the winners and Panamanian guard Luis Rodriguez (198-1999, college: UNLV) chipped in 14 points and 8 rebounds. Four Indios players scored in double figures. American swingman Andre Norris (203-1994, college: Dubuque) responded with 20 points and 6 rebounds and Yeison Colome (190-1996) scored 16 points and 4 assists. Both coaches allowed to play bench players saving starting five for next games. Indios moved-up to third place, which they share with Caneros and Leones. Indios will meet Reales (#7) in the next round. Caneros will play against Leones (#4) and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Caneros: A.Norris 20+6reb, Y.Colome 16+3reb+4ast, E.Suero 10+3reb, V.Okouo 8+4reb+1ast, B.Polanco 8+7reb, R.Guerrero 3+8reb
Indios: E.Sosa 17+2reb+10ast, L.Rodriguez 14+8reb+1ast, K.Blue 12+4reb+3ast, J.Rosario 12+3reb+2ast, L.Ferreiras 10+7reb+2ast, C.Gettys 9+7reb+3ast

Leones - Titanes 85-73

There was a small surprise in Santo Domingo where sixth ranked Leones (3-2) defeated 3rd placed Titanes (3-3) 85-73 on Tuesday. It was a great shooting night for Leones especially from behind the arc, where they had solid 62.5 percentage. They looked well-organized offensively handing out 27 assists. American swingman Trahson Burrell (201-1992, college: Memphis) stepped up and scored 20 points and 8 rebounds for the winners and point guard Jaison Valdez (188-1995) chipped in 4 points, 7 rebounds and 16 assists. Point guard Richard Bautista (185-1997) responded with 15 points, 9 rebounds and 7 assists and American swingman Brandon Spearman (191-1991, college: Hawaii, agency: BIG) scored 23 points. Both coaches allowed to play bench players saving starting five for next games. Leones moved-up to third place, which they share with Caneros and Indios. Defending champion Titanes dropped to the sixth position with three games lost. Leones will meet Caneros (#5) in the next round. Titanes will play against Soles and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Titanes: B.Spearman 23+1ast, R.Bautista 15+9reb+7ast, X.Reyes 14+3reb, D.Tham 7+5reb+2ast, J.Boykins 4+2reb, R.Tamarez 4
Leones: T.Burrell 20+8reb+2ast, N.Faust 14+2reb+2ast, E.Vargas 13+8reb+1ast, G.Suero 13+3reb+2ast, B.Savinon 11+2reb+1ast, L.Cabrera 6+11reb+3ast

Soles - Reales 70-79

We cannot really consider it an upset in the game between close teams in Santo Domingo where 7th ranked Soles (1-5) were defeated by eighth ranked Reales (1-4) 79-70 on Tuesday. Reales forced 19 Soles turnovers. American power forward Charles Mitchell (203-1993, college: Georgia Tech) stepped up with a double-double by scoring 19 points and 13 rebounds for the winners and forward Yeikson Montero (196-1996, college: EMU) chipped in 15 points. Four Reales players scored in double figures. Forward Josue Salazar responded with 13 points and 6 rebounds and American power forward James Banks III (207-1998, college: Georgia Tech) scored 10 points and 7 rebounds. Both coaches allowed to play bench players saving starting five for next games. Reales left bottom position moving up to seventh place. It was Soles' third loss in a row. They dropped to the bottom position with five games lost. Reales will meet at home higher ranked Indios (#3) in the next round and it will be quite challenging to get another victory. Soles will play against Titanes (#6) in San Cristobal and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Soles: J.Salazar 13+6reb+3ast, J.Banks III 10+7reb+1ast, F.Pichardo 9+6reb+1ast, M.Guzman 9+1reb, R.Palmer 8+2reb+2ast, J.Liriano 8+3reb+2ast
Reales: C.Mitchell 19+13reb+1ast, Y.Montero 15+3reb+3ast, V.Martinez 11+4reb+3ast, L.Duarte 10+1reb+1ast, D.Perry 6+1reb+3ast, A.Pena 5+5reb

Indios - Metros 108-105

The biggest surprise took place in San Francisco where host Indios (3-2) edged league's leader Metros (4-2) 108-105 on Wednesday evening. It ended at the same time the four-game winning streak of Metros. Indios made 18-of-21 free shots (85.7 percent) during the game. They looked well-organized offensively handing out 26 assists. The best player for the winners was Luismal Ferreiras (200-2003) who had a double-double by scoring 20 points and 17 rebounds. Panamanian guard Luis Rodriguez (198-1999, college: UNLV) chipped in 23 points and 5 assists. Juan Guerrero (203-1993) produced 24 points and 8 rebounds and American point guard Tu Holloway (183-1989, college: Xavier) added 16 points and 8 assists respectively for the guests. Both teams had five players each who scored in double figures. Both coaches used bench players in such tough game. Indios moved-up to third place, which they share with Caneros and Leones. Metros at the other side still keep top position with two games lost. They were joined at the leadership position by Marineros who have the same record. Metros will play next round against league's leader Marineros trying to make it back to the top of the standings. Indios will try to continue on its current victory against seventh ranked Reales in La Vega.
Top scorers:
Metros: J.Guerrero 24+8reb+2ast, J.Matos 18+4reb+5ast, T.Holloway 16+3reb+8ast, B.Francis 16+4reb+3ast, J.Geronimo 15+5reb+1ast, B.Mendez 6+7reb+1ast
Indios: L.Rodriguez 23+2reb+5ast, E.Polanco 20+4reb+3ast, L.Ferreiras 20+17reb+3ast, K.Blue 14+3reb+3ast, E.Sosa 13+6reb+7ast, C.Gettys 12+7reb+4ast

Marineros - Caneros 94-80

The game had a very big importance for fourth-ranked Marineros as it allowed them to take a leadership position after previous leader's (Metros) loss. Marineros defeated second-ranked Caneros in Puerto Plata 94-80. It was a key game for the top position in the league. Marineros players were unselfish on offense dishing 29 assists comparing to just 12 passes made by Caneros' players. Forward Andersson Garcia (201-2000, college: Texas A&M) orchestrated the victory by scoring 8 points, 10 rebounds and 13 assists. Carlos Carela (185-2000) contributed with 21 points and 5 assists for the winners. Eusebio Suero answered with 19 points and 5 rebounds and Yeison Colome (190-1996) added 16 points and 5 rebounds in the effort for Caneros. Both teams had four players each who scored in double figures. Both coaches tested many bench players which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. As mentioned above they are at the top of the standings, which they share with Metros. Caneros at the other side dropped to the third place with two games lost. They share the position with Indios and Leones. Caneros will play next round against strong Leones trying to get back on the winning streak. Marineros will try to continue on its current victory against second ranked Metros at Santiago.
Top scorers:
Caneros: E.Suero 19+5reb, Y.Colome 16+5reb+2ast, B.Polanco 11+6reb+3ast, J.Del Rosario 10+4reb+1ast, L.Bearden 10, V.Okouo 9+6reb+2ast
Marineros: C.Carela 21+2reb+5ast, S.Curry 17+8reb, J.Bello 14+7reb+6ast, D.Rosser 12+2reb, A.Garcia 8+10reb+13ast, D.Wright 8