SAN Beda brandished its championship credentials in the NCAA Season 101 following an impressive 79-70 takedown of defending champion Mapua, on Friday at the Playtime Filoil Center in San Juan.
Behind Janti Miller's big first half, the Red Lions quickly took control of the game posting a 19-point lead early on before settling for a 49-34 spread by the halftime interval.
But champions are usually seen with how they handle adversity and that's exactly what the Red Lions did to close out the third period.
With the Cardinals hot on their heels following a 14-2 run to trim the Red Lions' lead to just one, 59-58, the boys of coach Yuri Escueta responded with a 10-2 run of their own to regain control of the game for good.
"Sabi ko nga, we knew they were coming in aggressive in the third quarter. Sa sobrang diin nila umatake, ang dami nilang offensive rebounds nung third quarter, there were more opportunities for them to score. Luckily we had that lead coming in that first half," he said
"I just told them to compose theirselves. Don't rush. When they started to compose theirselves, the shots started coming in we started to get stops and rebounds and fastbreaks," he added.
"I'm happy with how we were able to regroup and compose ourselves. They were ready to step up in that kind of moment yung ganung pressure."
Miller finished with 20 points and two rebounds while Nygel Gonzales added 11 points and six boards. Jomel Puno had a solid all-around game with nine points, six rebounds and four assists for the Red Lions who improved to a joint-league best at 4-1.
Penny Estacio finished with only seven points, but made two big shots - first a three-pointer to end the third quarter which swung the momentum back to the Red Lions, and the dagger with 57 seconds left to give his squad a 77-68 lead.
"Everytime I put Penny in, he made baskets. Important baskets yung baskets ni Penny na yun especially nung humahabol sila nung third and fourth."
Cy Cuenco led Mapua with 13 points, six rebounds and three assists while EJ Sapasap and Cyril Gonzlaes chipped in 11 and 10 markers apiece for then ow 3-2 Mapua.
Clint Escamis continued to struggle for the Cardinals as he went field goal-less missing all five shots for two points.
The scores:
SAN BEDA 79 – Miller 20, N. Gonzales 11, Puno 9, Andrada 8, Lina 8, Calimag 7, Estacio 7, Reyes 4, Etulle 2, Sajonia 2, Celzo 1, Culdora 0
MAPÚA 70 – Cuenco 13, Sapasap 11, C. Gonzales 10, Delos Reyes 8, Concepcion 7, Nitura 7, Recto 6, Igliane 4, Escamis 2, Lazarte 2, Gulapa 0
Quarters: 26-16, 49-34, 64-58, 79-70
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