Games Monday (The Arena, San Juan City)
2 p.m. – Arellano vs. Jose Rizal
4 p.m. – Perpetual vs. San Sebastian
Team Standings
San Beda 11-0
San Sebastian 10-1
Jose Rizal 8-3
Mapua 7-4
Arellano U 4-7
Letran 4-7
St. Benilde 4-8
Emilio Aguinaldo 2-10
Perpetual Help 0-10
COLLEGE of St. Benilde went through the wringer on Friday it derailed Arellano University, 71-69, while the Mapua Cardinals defeated the Emilio Aguinaldo College Generals, 74-65, at the Arena in San Juan City.
Mark de Guzman paced the Blazers with 19 points, including his split charities in the last 2.2 seconds to lift the Taft-based squad against the gritty Chiefs in the 86th National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).
The win installed St. Benilde in seventh place with a 4-8 (win-loss) slate, while Arellano slipped to a share of sixth and seventh place with Letran for a 4-7 card.
St. Benilde’s win also catapulted idle San Sebastian (10-1), the defending champion, straight to the Final Four alongside unbeaten San Beda (11-0).
Blazers’ coach Richard del Rosario is seemed to be happy with the performance of his wards while dropping hints of not making it to the Final Four for the eighth straight year.
“Arithmetically, we still have a chance but it’s a long shot for us. We are only after of the experience and for the boys to regain their confidence. We are a young team as seen by the bad decisions they made in the past games,” he told reporters.
But even with the admission, del Rosario still credited his team for making it two in a row against Arellano, which they defeated via a 70-64 decision last July.
The Blazers are also fresh from an 83-64 demolition of the Generals last Monday, capping their week with two straight victories.
“I’m happy for Mark because he really struggled in our last few matches. I would like to give credit for Carlo (Lastimosa) because he took a step back to give his other teammates a chance,” he said.
It was a perfect gift for Lastimosa, who celebrated his 20th birthday on Friday nailing nine points, two rebounds, two assists and a steal.
“We tried to improve on our defense as well as our offense for this game, and I’m glad it paid off,” the nephew of former PBA star Jojo Lastimosa told Sun.Star.
Arellano missed two chances to list their fifth win in the tournament when bulky rookie Jerald Lapuz erred on his two foul shots while Vergel Zulueta, who just returned from a one-game suspension, flubbed a potential long-range shot just as the final buzzer sounded.
Mapua ousts Emilio Aguinaldo
In the main event, the Mapua Cardinals showed the exit door to the Emilio Aguinaldo College Generals.
Powered by Erwin Cornejo and Allan Mangahas, Mapua nipped the struggling EAC squad and bolstered their Final Four bid after improving with a 7-4 (win-loss) record.
Trailing by nine in the opening quarter, Mapua made a 25-6 blitz in the second quarter to overpower EAC, stretching their dominance in the third canto and never looked back.
“We have a bad start in the first quarter. Our goal is to tie the score at 15-all but we failed to achieve it. I’m glad that the players stepped up in the second quarter as we held them (EAC) to just six points. This is a good win for us in time for our game against San Beda (next Wednesday),” said coach Chito Victolero.
Cornejo finished with 15 points while Mangahas and Terre Guillermo added 12 and nine markers, respectively for the Cardinals while Claude Cubo bannered the Generals with 15 points.
The Generals ended their Final Four campaign with a 2-10 slate, joining winless Perpetual Help as early casualties in the nine-member league.
In juniors’ play, Mapua edged EAC, 76-71, to join Jose Rizal at No. 5 on 6-5 slates and remain in the Final Four hunt.
St. Benilde, for its part, trounced Arellano U, 69-54, to notch its fifth win against seven setbacks.
The Scores:
First Game:
St.Benilde (71) - de Guzman 19, dela Paz 11, Lastimosa 9, Nayve 7, Tan 7, McCoy 4, Wong 4, Argamino 4, Abolucion 3, Sinco 2, Manalac 1, Amin 0.
Arellano U (69) - Celada 24, Ciriacruz 12, Lapuz 8, Zulueta 7, del Rosario 4, Caperal 4, Acidre 4, Anquilo 4, Palma 2
Quarters: 15-26, 37-34, 53-56, 71-69.
Second Game:
Mapua 74- Cornejo 15, Mangahas 12, Guillermo 9, Pascual 8, Sarangay 7, Acosta 7, Stevens 5, Banal 5, Parala 4, Ighalo 2, Ranises 0.
EAC 65- Cubo 15, Jamon 14, Vargas 13, Mendoza 10, Lapitan 3, Chiong 2, Santos 2, Tuazon 2, R. Yaya 2, L. Yaya 2, Diolanto 0, Villegas 0.
Quarters: 8-17, 33-23, 59-43, 74-65.
(Virgil Lopez/Sunnex)