COLLEGE of St. Benilde proved its might as it came through with a convincing 94-80 win over Lyceum of the Philippines in the finals of the maiden edition of Pinoyliga Cup’s ‘The Big Dance’ recently at the Amoranto Arena in Quezon City.
Allen Liwag led a balanced attack by CSB as he delivered a double-double of 21 points and 10 rebounds in more than 30 minutes of play. A 6-foot-6 center/forward, Liwag punished LPU’s defense with his inside game.
Gabriel Cometa and Alaine Joshua Cajucom each scored 13 points for the Blazers, while Justine Sanchez added 12 , and Ian Torres with 10 for the Taft-based team.
CSB coach Charles Tiu said winning the championship is a good sign the Blazers are on track in their preparation for the NCAA men’s basketball tournament where they are among the favorites in Season 100.
“It’s a big confidence booster for us and we got some good reps and games,” said Tiu.
Ato Barba led Lyceum with 17 points, while Gyle Montano contributed 15 and JM Bravo added 13 points for the Pirates, who played minus three injured key players including Mclaude Guadana.
Aside from becoming the inaugural champion of ‘The Big Dance’ St. Benilde also took home the handsome ‘perpetual’ trophy worth P200,000. The school will retain the hardware if it defends the title next year, but if another team wins, it gets to keep the trophy.
If a team wins it three straight seasons, the champion gets to keep the trophy for good.
The tournament – organized by Pinoyliga Cup – is patterned after the US NCAA March Madness.
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