The short break between the third and fourth quarters felt like the tense, electric calm before a thunderstorm. The Dasmariñas starters, who had been forced to watch from the sidelines for twenty excruciating minutes, were practically vibrating with pent-up energy. They had witnessed their teammates absorb a furious onslaught and hold the line with nothing but sheer grit. Now, it was their turn to release the storm.
"You see that?" Coach Gutierrez said in the huddle, his voice low and rumbling with intensity. He gestured to the exhausted but proud faces of the second and third units.
"They did their job. They dragged a championship-caliber team into a muddy, ugly, exhausting dogfight. They held the line. They gave you this."
He pointed to the scoreboard. It read 35-35.
"They've handed you a ten-minute game, on our home court, for all the marbles. But look across the way."
They all turned their heads. The Trece Martires starters were bent over, hands on their knees, gasping for air. They had been on the court for thirty straight, brutal minutes, battling against wave after wave of fresh defenders. Ibeke Matumba's massive chest was heaving. Tracy Romeo's face was slick with a layer of weary sweat.
"They are tired," the coach stated, a predator's glint in his eye. "You are fresh. There will be no complex strategy for this quarter. There is only one instruction: run. Push the pace until their legs give out and their lungs burn. We are going to turn this gym into a runway. We will be relentless. We will be merciless. We will remind them why we are the regional champions. Now get out there and finish this."
As Tristan, Marco, Aiden, Ian, and Cedrick stepped onto the court, the atmosphere in the gym shifted dramatically. The air crackled. The tired legs of the TMH starters visibly sagged as they saw the five rested, hungry sharks returning to the water.
"Oh, look who's back," Tracy Romeo said, his voice laced with sarcasm, though it couldn't fully mask his weariness. "Decided to join us for the end, huh?"
Tristan just looked at him, his expression calm and unreadable. He offered no verbal reply, but his eyes delivered a clear, cold message: The real game starts now.
Start of the Fourth Quarter: Dasmariñas 35 — Trece Martires 35
The quarter began with Dasmariñas inbounding the ball. The difference was not just noticeable; it was staggering.
Tristan took the inbound pass and exploded up the court. It wasn't just a jog; it was an all-out sprint. The TMH players, accustomed to the methodical pace of the third quarter, were caught flat-footed. Tracy Romeo had to turn and sprint just to catch up.
Tristan crossed half-court in three dribbles, the defense completely scrambled. He saw Ian, also sprinting, beat a tired Ibeke Matumba down the floor. Tristan fired a full-court, two-handed chest pass that hit Ian perfectly in stride. Ian caught it, took one thunderous step, and flushed it down with a two-handed slam that seemed to shake the entire foundation of the gym.
Score: Dasmariñas 37 — Trece Martires 35
The play took less than six seconds.
"WELCOME TO THE TRACK MEET!" Marco roared as he ran back on defense, a feral grin on his face.
TMH, dazed, tried to settle into their offense. But the Dasmariñas defense was a different beast now. The starters weren't just playing their positions; they were swarming, their fresh legs allowing them to be everywhere at once. Aiden, guarding JP Simon, denied the pass so aggressively that Simon was forced two steps beyond the three-point line just to receive the ball. Cedrick was bodying Rain Ocampo, not giving up an inch.
Tracy Romeo, seeing his options dwindle, tried to isolate Tristan. He used a series of quick crossovers, trying to create an opening. But Tristan's feet were a blur. His upgraded Agility: 70 allowed him to stay perfectly in sync with the flashy point guard.
Tracy, frustrated, drove hard to his right, but Tristan cut him off, absorbing the contact with his newly enhanced Strength: 60 and forcing him to pick up his dribble.
Trapped near the baseline, Tracy made a desperate pass towards the top of the key.
Marco, who had been baiting the passing lane, saw it coming. He shot the gap, intercepted the pass cleanly, and was gone.
It was a two-on-one fast break, Marco and Tristan against a backpedaling Tracy Romeo. Marco could have taken it all the way, but he was a showman. He slowed slightly, allowing Tristan to catch up, then threw a perfect lob off the backboard.
Tristan soared, catching the ball high above the rim and slamming it through with authority.
Score: Dasmariñas 39 — Trece Martires 35
The bench players who had fought so hard in the third quarter were on their feet, screaming, their exhaustion forgotten. They had held the line, and now the cavalry was finishing the war.
The TMH coach immediately called a timeout. His team walked to the bench, their shoulders slumped, their faces a mixture of shock and utter fatigue. A 4-0 run in thirty seconds had completely shattered their composure.
"They're dead on their feet," Aiden said in the huddle, his eyes gleaming. "They can't keep up."
"Don't let them breathe," Coach Gutierrez commanded. "The moment they step back on this court, press them. Full-court pressure. Make them work for every inch. No mercy."
The game resumed, and the onslaught continued. The Dasmariñas press was suffocating. Tristan and Marco trapped Tracy Romeo in the backcourt, forcing him to make a high, looping pass that Aiden nearly stole. They broke the press, but with only eight seconds on the shot clock. Jace Yap, who had been hounded relentlessly by Marco, finally got a touch. He tried to create space for a shot, but Marco was all over him.
"No easy looks today, shooter!" Marco barked, his hand in Jace's face.
"Just need one," Jace grunted, using a screen to get a sliver of space. He fired a tough, contested three-pointer. It caught the front of the rim and bounced high into the air.
Inside, the battle for the rebound was brutal.
Ian and Cedrick had Ibeke and Ocampo boxed out. The ball fell between them. Tristan, reading the trajectory perfectly, flew in from the perimeter, skying over everyone to snatch the defensive rebound. It was a display of pure athleticism that his previous stats wouldn't have allowed.
He landed and was off again, another one-man fast break. This time, he didn't need help. He weaved through the retreating defenders, his dribble a blur. As he entered the paint, Ibeke Matumba, running on fumes and pride, made one last stand, rising up to contest the shot.
Tristan went up, and for a moment, it looked like a repeat of his audacious layup from the second quarter. But this time, he simply used his body to shield the ball, absorbed the contact from the tired center, and kissed the ball gently off the glass for an and-one.
[Slithery Finisher] flashed in his mind's eye. The whistle blew. The basket was good.
Score: Dasmariñas 41 — Trece Martires 35.
And-one.
Tristan let out a rare, loud roar, pounding his chest. He calmly stepped to the line and sank the free throw, completing the three-point play.
Score: Dasmariñas 42 — Trece Martires 35
The initial 8-0 run had become a 12-0 run, bridging the third and fourth quarters. The game had been completely broken open.
But the Trece Martires team was a team of champions for a reason. They refused to fold. Led by the sheer will of their two best players, they began to fight back.
Tracy Romeo, realizing he couldn't outrun his opponents, slowed the game to a crawl. He used his incredible basketball IQ to orchestrate the offense, making smart, simple plays. He found JP Simon on a backdoor cut for their first points of the quarter.
Then, it was Ibeke's turn. On the next possession, he received the ball on the low block. Instead of trying to back Ian down, he used a quick, surprisingly agile up-and-under move, catching Ian off-guard and drawing a foul as he scored. He completed the three-point play.
"Not done yet!" Ibeke yelled, glaring at Ian and Cedrick. "This is my house!"
"You're a long way from home, big man," Ian retorted, but the play had been a stark reminder of the talent they were facing.
The game settled into a tense, back-and-forth rhythm. The Dasmariñas run had been weathered, and now it was a test of execution. Marco and Jace Yap traded a pair of tough, contested three-pointers, each shot a dagger to the other team's momentum. Aiden and JP Simon battled on the wings, their versatile, all-around games canceling each other out.
With three minutes left to play, the lead had been cut to five.
Score: Dasmariñas 50 — Trece Martires 45
This was the championship moment. The point in the game where fatigue makes cowards of even the best players. But this was where Tristan's secret weapon, his inhuman stamina, became the deciding factor.
While every other player on the court was visibly laboring, their movements a fraction slower, their shots falling a bit shorter, Tristan still looked fresh. His dribble was just as sharp, his decisions just as crisp.
He brought the ball up the court, his eyes scanning the floor. He saw Marco being face-guarded by Jace Yap. He saw Aiden being denied the ball by JP Simon. He saw the paint packed, with Ibeke daring him to enter. He called for a high screen from Cedrick. As he came off it, Tracy Romeo fought over it, staying with him. For a moment, nothing was there. The offense had stalled.
But then Tristan saw it—a subtle shift in the defense. As Cedrick rolled to the basket, Rain Ocampo, his defender, took one step in to help, to prevent the pass. It was a mistake. It was the only opening they needed.
Tristan, without looking, fired a pinpoint, behind-the-back pass to the spot Ocampo had just vacated. Cedrick, who had been expecting the lob, saw the pass and immediately flared out to the now-empty mid-range area. He caught the ball in perfect rhythm. There was no one within ten feet of him. He calmly rose and drained the fifteen-foot jumper.
It was a breathtaking display of chemistry and court vision. The TMH defense just stared, dumbfounded.
"What kind of pass was that?!" Marco yelled, running over and slapping Tristan on the back. "You have eyes in the back of your head!"
Tristan just smiled. Floor General. Making everyone around me better.
That play seemed to break the back of the Trece Martires defense. Their will was finally fading. On the next possession, a tired pass from Tracy was stolen by Aiden, leading to an easy fast-break layup for Marco. Then, after a missed TMH shot, Tristan pushed the pace again. He drove the lane, drew the entire exhausted defense, and kicked it out to a wide-open Aiden in the corner, who calmly drained a three.
The lead had ballooned to twelve points with just over a minute left. The fight was over.
The final sixty seconds played out with a sense of inevitability. The TMH coach subbed out his starters, a gesture of concession. They walked off the court to a respectful, standing ovation from the Dasmariñas players and the few faculty watching. Coach Gutierrez did the same, letting his bench finish the game.
When the final buzzer sounded, the scoreboard told the story of a dominant, decisive victory that was far closer than the final score indicated.
Final Score: Dasmariñas 62 — Trece Martires 49
There was no wild celebration. This wasn't a championship. It was a statement. The players from both teams met at center court, shaking hands, the animosity of the game replaced by a deep, hard-won respect.
"You guys are the real deal," Tracy Romeo said to Tristan, clapping him on the shoulder. "That speed in the fourth… we had no answer. Go win it all."
"You guys made us better today," Tristan replied sincerely. "That was one of the toughest games we've ever played."
Ibeke Matumba sought out Ian and Cedrick.
"You two are strong," he said, his voice a low rumble. "But you need to be stronger for the Nationals. There are others like me there. Bigger, even."
"We'll be ready," Ian said, meeting his gaze without flinching.
As the Trece Martires team filed out of the gym, the Green Archers gathered around their coach. The exhaustion was immense, but it was coupled with a new, unshakeable confidence.
"Today," Coach Gutierrez said, his voice resonating with pride, "you learned what it means to be a complete team. You saw what our shooters can do. You saw what our brawlers can do. You saw what our engine room can do. And you saw what our finishers can do. Every single player in this gym contributed to that win."
He looked at them, a rare, full smile on his face. "We are not just a collection of talented players anymore. We are a weapon. And in one month, we are going to show the entire country what we're made of."
They broke the huddle with a unified roar, the sound echoing through the empty gym. It was the sound of a team that had been tested, that had been pushed to its limits, and that had discovered, in the heat of the crucible, that they were finally ready for the war to come.