The Cochrane Ballers fell just short in a comeback bid in their semfinal matchup against Barrio in the Pinoy Basketball Airdie playoffs, June 25.

Known for their late game comebacks, the Ballers evaporated a 20-plus point lead Barrio had accumulated by the end of the third quarter and chipped away to come within one basket with just over a minute remaining in regulation. Baller fans and players gave out a huge cheer when the scoreboard read 79-77, but a few quick baskets by Barrio deflated that emotionally-charged drive and ended any hopes of advancing.

Coach/manager Jason Emperado is proud of the determination his team has shown, game in, game out.

"We were missing one of our key players today, but we played with our hearts," says Emperado. "Even if they're ahead by 20 we have a never-say-die attitude"

"We like to come back from behind. We like to play like an underdog, even though we were the champions last year."

Barrio now advances to the gold medal game against 2Y Welding, who are undefeated this season and won their semifinal matchup against Adessa 2.0. The Ballers face Adessa in the consolation game, July 8.

The Ballers formed upwards of 90 per cent of last year's league champion DQ Warriors and this season opted to go with a distinctly Cochrane name. Basketball is a wildly popular sport in the Filipino community here and continues to grow., 

"There are so many players in Cochrane we're thinking about entering two teams next season," he Emperado. "They know when they see a Cochrane team that they're all good ball players."

Emperado will be coaching the Red Team in the league's all-star game, July 15.

The Ballers finished in a two-way tie for second in the regular season of the nine-team league with a 6-2 record.