MAPUA’S rising star Allan Mangahas is named Accel-Filoil NCAA Press Corps Player of the Week after leading his team to a pair of emphatic wins in the 86th men’s basketball tournament recently.
The sophomore guard, who is also Season 84 rookie of the year, played the ecstatic Cardinals with a personal season-best 25 points, four rebounds and three steals in their overtime victory against the sliding St. Benilde Blazers last Friday.
The win catapulted the Intramuros-based dribblers to solo third (5-2), one and a half games behind league-leaders San Beda and San Sebastian (6-0).
During the past assignments of Mapua against Emilio Aguinaldo College and St. Benilde, Mangahas averaged 15.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, four assists, and 1.5 steals per outing to receive the weekly award from sportswriters and backed by Terrilicious meat products.
With St. Benilde holding a one-point lead, Mangahas drilled in triple for Mapua to take a 63-61 advantage at 1:29 mark of the extra period.
Mangahas registered five rebounds and a team-high five assists in the Cardinals’ rout of the Generals.
Lions, Stags keep mission
Meantime, NCAA action resumes on Wednesday with San Beda taking on a battle weary St. Benilde (1-5) in the 2 p.m. encounter at the Arena in San Juan.
The highly-favored Red Lions are eyeing a seventh straight win in the oldest collegiate league in the country, while the Blazers are hard-pressed to end a five-game losing streak, including last week’s bitter loss to Mapua.
“We have set up a plan already against Benilde,” said mentor Frankie Lim.
San Beda will rely anew on former player of the week Sudan Daniel, Jake Pascual and even Fil-Aussie recruit Anthony Semerad, who posted a personal-high 20 markers, 10 boards, two assists and a steal against their second half rout of Arellano Chiefs last Wednesday.
St. Benilde, on the other hand, turns to Mark de Guzman who figured well against Mapua.
In the other game, defending champion and host San Sebastian College will tangle at 4 p.m. as the Stags try to keep their unblemished record in the nine-member league. (Virgil Lopez/Sunnex)