The Marianas' Kelvin Fitial goes up for the finish against Pohnpei during a goodwill basketball game Wednesday at the Ada gym.
POHNPEI and the NMI ended the 5-on-5 competition of the 2023 NMI-Pohnpei Goodwill Basketball Games with victories on Wednesday at the Ada gym.
Pohnpei’s men bagged their third consecutive double-digit win against a local team, 106-69, while the Marianas women bested their Pohnpeian counterparts 58-42.
In the men’s division game, the opening quarter was the Marianas’ strongest performance. Coby Santos took the spotlight in the early minutes as he constantly attacked the rim, drawing a handful of fouls and scoring five points from the charity line. He them followed up with a triple to give his team the lead.
 Pohnpei fought back with strong finishes from underneath the rim, but the Marianas’ Ervin Villarin and Keith Santos found their range from beyond the arc with two and one triple, respectively, to maintain a one-point advantage, 19-18.
The local team, however, failed to maintain efficiency in the second canto due to Pohnpei’s pressure defense. With each successful stop, Pohnpei unleashed three-pointers and converted seven of them to seize the lead, 51-34.
In the third quarter, the Marianas’ Frankie Satur and Jeff Castro combined for 12 points, but Pohnpei continued to deliver on the other end  to maintain a huge lead en route to victory, 106-69.
Women’s division
In the women’s division, Team Marianas defeated Pohnpei, 58-42.
After an even first quarter battle, the Marianas ladies gradually took over the driver’s seat thanks to Destiny Pangelinan who thrived off the free-throw line with nine points to help put her team ahead by halftime, 25-18.
Pohnpei fought hard throughout the second half with Vanessa Helgenberger and Esther Edward at the frontline. However, the Marianas stuck to their strategy with constant drives toward the hoop mixed with long range shots to maintain the upper hand and seal the deal, 58-42.
Today, Friday, the NMI and Pohnpei will compete in 3x3 games.
