IT will basically be a similar cast, albeit in different pairings and positionings, as NCAA Season 100 starts its semifinals starting this Saturday at the Cuneta Astrodome in Pasay City.
Mapua once again enters the Final Four with a twice-to-beat advantage, this time as the top seed when it takes on fourth-seeded Lyceum, while a grudge match awaits between second-seed College of St. Benilde and defending champion San Beda in the other pairing with the Blazers owning the playoff incentive.
With that in mind, let’s take a look at the two massive match-ups for this centennial season.
(2) Benilde vs. (3) San Beda
(Elims match-ups: 70-65 Benilde, 70-62 Benilde)
In order for Benilde to finally live up to its potential, it must run through the defending champion, and most successful school in NCAA history, in San Beda.
The retooled Blazers looked good as advertised with the arrival of MVP frontrunner Allen Liwag alongside Tony Ynot, Justine Sanchez, Jhomel Ancheta, and Gab Cometa spelling trouble for the rest of the field.
While the green-and-white parades fresh faces, the Red Lions will be navigating the playoffs without now-La Salle Green Archer Jacob Cortez who made a name for himself in the most crucial games for the defending champions last season.
Nonetheless, coach Yuri Escueta has done a great job rallying his troops with veterans Yukien Andrada, Jomel Puno, and James Payosing blending well with newcomers Bryan Sajonia and Bismarck Lina.
History runs deep
One interesting side story to watch in this clash is if the three new Blazers who used to play for the Red Lions in Ynot, Sanchez, and Cometa continue to torture their former squad.
In the late elimination round match between the two teams, not a few observers noticed the hostility of the San Beda crowd towards the trio, with some hurling words that can’t be published, as they led Benilde to a rare season sweep of their former alma mater.
The players are pretty much cool with each other, but there’s most definitely no love lost between the passionate San Beda alumni and these transferees, adding drama to an already exciting meeting.
A classic case of offense vs. defense
Benilde has been an offensive juggernaut all season long. Averaging 79.6 points per game (third-best in the league), while shooting a league-high 43.8 percent mostly because of their league-leading 18.5 assists per game, the Blazers have been nothing short of exceptional from this end.
Their point of attack comes from the inside, with Liwag and Sanchez towering over everybody underneath, as Benilde also ranks second in paint points at 40.4. They generate more than a quarter of those through offensive rebounds, getting a total of 13.2 second chance points per game.
San Beda is the complete opposite
The Red Lions allow the least number of points and field goal percentage in the league (66.4, 35.5-percent), and interestingly, they’re also the best defensive team inside the paint, only allowing 25.3 points per game and just 10.8 second chance points per game.
They pretty much checked all those boxes against the Blazers in their face-offs, but what was sorely missing was their accurate marksmanship from downtown, making just a combined 12-48 in two games, after making a league-high nine a game on 32 percent shooting on average.
If San Beda rediscovers its touch in this series, this will be interesting.
(1) Mapua vs. (4) Lyceum
(Elims match-ups: 96-81 Lyceum, 69-68 Mapua)
It took quite some time for these two teams to heat up in Season 100, but when they finally did, they never looked back.
The Cardinals completed a second round sweep of the elims to claim the top seed behind reigning MVP Clint Escamis, while the Pirates surged to four consecutive victories to take the fourth seed after a shaky midseason which saw them lose JM Bravo and Mac Guadana to various injuries.
Both teams are now healthy, making this match all the more interesting.
Good ol’ fashioned shootout
Both these teams are in the top four when it comes to scoring, with the Pirates ranking second in the league by putting up 81 a game, and the Cardinals at fourth with 76.3 per game.
Behind Escamis, MC Cuenco, and Lawrence Mangubat, the Cardinals do most of their damage outside, as they ranked second in most threes and percentage, lagging only behind San Beda.
While Mapua makes a living from the outside, Lyceum will look to force turnovers and run, as it leads the league in fastbreak points with 15.6 points per game, while also forcing 15 turnovers.
Perhaps the only difference between the two teams is that the Cardinals can defend consistently, something that the Pirates will have to work on entering this showdown.
Is Lyceum Mapua’s foil?
While Mapua has run roughshod basically over every team in the tournament, one squad that has always given it problems is Lyceum.
The Pirates' pace makes them a very dangerous crew to deal with, and they have proven to have the necessary tools to match up with the Cardinals' bigger guards and wings.
Had it not been for Mangubat’s clutch ways, Lyceum would’ve actually swept its not so friendly neighbor and denied Mapua of an immaculate second round run.
They can score with Mapua. They can hang with Mapua’s best players. Now, the only question for coach Gilbert Malabanan’s team is, can they make the stops when it matters the most?
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