COLLEGE of St. Benilde finally played to its true form as it ran through Arellano 89-73 in the NCAA Season 94 on Friday at the Filoil Flying V Arena.
Coming off back to back losses at the hands of lower-ranked teams San Sebastian and Mapua, the Blazers finally showed the tenacity that made them darkhorses at the start of the season.
Justin Gutang and Rob Nayve anchored a third-quarter assault to pull away for good, before padding that lead to as many as 24 points as the Blazers improved to 8-5.
“Definitely we regained our identity. It’s just the reminders the coaches gave them. It’s a long journey that we have and we’ve been through a lot this season already,” said St. Benilde coach TY Tang.
“Our goal this season is within reach. We just have to be faithful to those little things,” he added.
Gutang finished with 23 points, six assists, and three steals to continue his romp for the Blazers.
Nayve finished with a career-best 16 points, making him the third guy this season after Robert Bolick and CJ Perez to notch their best scoring performance against the Chiefs.
Clement Leutcheu had a double-double of 14 points and 11 rebounds while Unique Naboa added 13 points.
Ian Alban led the way for the Chiefs with 22 points but not even a change in coaching from Jerry Codiñera to Junjie Ablan would turn their luck as they dropped to 4-8.
The scores:
CSB 89 – Gutang 23, Nayve 16, Leutcheu 14, Naboa 13, Haruna 9, Carlos 6, Belgica 6, Pagulayan 2, Dixon 0, Pasturan 0, Young 0, Velasco 0, Barnes 0
ARELLANO 73 – Alban 22, Concepcion 15, Canete 11, Dela Cruz 10, Alcoriza 6, Dela Torre 3, Villoria 3, Sera Josef 2, Santos 1, Segura 0, Bayla 0
QUARTERS: 22-14, 37-26, 65-50, 89-73
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