The De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde (DLS-CSB) Blazers stalled the Mapúa University (MU) Cardinals’ run in a down-to-the-wire 71-69 triumph today, Oct. 26, at the Filoil EcoOil Centre in San Juan City.
The Cardinals drew first blood with a layup by Marcus Nitura as the Blazers countered with back-to-back buckets and a converted basket from Raffy Celis. Mapúa retaliated with consecutive triples to steam ahead, but Josh Cajucom, Ian Torres, and Ronjie Go kept Benilde’s offensive engine running to stay ahead. SJ Moore grabbed an offensive rebound in the final seconds and sank a jumper, ending the opener, 19-16.
The second canto was a sluggish offensive stretch for both squads, with Jhommel Ancheta, Arle Podador, and Celis building momentum for the Taft squad. Meanwhile, Nitura, Yam Concepcion, and Ken Dones sought to keep MU’s pace. Both teams scored an even 14 points for their respective squads as Nitura drilled a layup, trimming the Blazers’ lead to three, 33-30.
Coming out of the break, Celis quickly sank a triple for Benilde as Matthew Jucom drained two shots from the charity stripe. Marc Cuenco and Concepcion responded for the Cardinals, but Celis, Cajucom, and Torres orchestrated the men in green and white’s offense, creating a 10-point cushion at the end of the quarter, 55-45.
In the closing match, the Cardinals clawed their way back in the game, having gained momentum through timely baskets by Jamal Diaz, Lazarte, and Cuenco. Concepcion then buried a layup that tied MU to Benilde at 63 apiece. Nonetheless, Sanchez and Mowell Morales were able to penetrate the Cardinals’ defense to stay on top, allowing Cuenco to shoot from the line, cutting the deficit to one with less than 20 seconds left in the game. Ancheta sealed the win with a free throw, 71-69.
Player of the Game Ian Torres registered 15 points, 4 assists and 3 rebounds.
The Blazers are back in the win column and are seeking to sustain momentum against the Lyceum of the Philippines (LPU) Pirates on Oct. 30, 3 p.m., at the San Andres Sports Complex, Manila City, with a live telecast on One Sports on YouTube, PilipinasLIVE on CignalPlay and NCAA NXT on Cignal TV.
Box Scores:
DLS-CSB (71): Torres 15, Ancheta 14, Celis 14, Sanchez 7, Cajucom 4, Go 4, Lorenzo 4, Morales 3, Jucom 2, Podador 2, Moore 2, Galas 0
MU (69): - Cuenco 21, Concepcion 12, Diaz 9, M. Nitura 9, Igliane 7, Lazarte 5, Mendoza 3, Dones 2, Reyes 1, L. Nitura 0, Razon 0, Liwanag 0, Bernabe 0
Quarter scores: 19-16, 33-30, 55-45, 71-69
