With their backs against the wall, contender Western Union bounced back to beat Surangel and Sons, 93-80 in the ongoing semifinal round of the 2012 Filipino Basketball League (FBL), Sunday at the Palau National gym.

Down 44-37 at the end of the first half, Western Union went to the duo of Dennis Castro and rookie Nino Cajegas as they spurted a 29-15 run in the third to take the lead at 66-59. Western Union continued to strive in the final quarter that earned them the win and a 1-1 ticket in the semis.

Castro finished the game with 29 points while teammate Cajegas chipped in 21. Surangel and Sons’ top gunner Arnold Undecimo topscored with 31 markers but was not enough to fuel a comeback as they suffered their second lost for a 0-2 card.

On the other hand, defending champion FR Spoilers nailed their second win as they routed the MJ Rangers, 92-78 with five of their players finishing in double digit.

Lester Mendoza heads the cast of players who had a double digit performance after scoring 20 baskets while teammates Aries Echanova, Coco Gonzales, Michael Bombita and Mark Pagayanan tallied 19, 17, 14 and 12 points, respectively.

The win signals the Spoilers bid for title retention as they now take a 2-0 lead in the team standings while MJ Rangers suffered their first blow for a 1-1 card despite the 22 point performance of Nico Hinoza.

Games will resume on October 21 with MJ Rangers versus Surangel and Sons at 1 p.m. while FR Spoilers will battle Western Union in the main game at 2:30 p.m.

The semifinal round will follow a single round robin format with the top two squads moving on to the championship round, which will be a best of three series, while the lower two teams will vie for the consolation game.  By Peter Erick L. Magbanua (Island Times News)