The De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde (DLS-CSB) Blazers suffered a lights-out finish from the Mapua University (MU) Cardinals, 73-75, snapping their perfect win record in the second round of #NCAA100, today, Nov. 10, at the FilOil EcoOil Centre in San Juan City.

The Blazers’ Matthew Oli, Tony Ynot, and Ian Torres took charge against the Cardinals, setting the pace of the Taft Squad. The Cardinals replied with a counterattack from Yam Concepcion, draining a three-pointer. However, the men in green and white prevailed as their charges overpowered the defense of the men in yellow and red, claiming the first quarter in their favor, 28-16.

Clint Escamis and John Recto led the Cardinals’ offense as they attempted to close the gap from both sides of the hard court. Gab Cometa immediately stood up from the benches along with Allen Liwag, spearheading the first half of the game with a comfortable lead, 54-39.

The Blazers took their foot off the gas pedal and eased up in the third with less field goals and intensity. This allowed Escamis, along with Concepcion, to launch another counter offensive against the Taft Squad, combining fast breaks and clutch plays that limited the Blazers to just nine points in the quarter, 63-60.

The fourth quarter saw multiple deadlocks between the two teams. Justine Sanchez led the defense against a full turnaround game from Intramuros. Reigning MVP Escamis capitalized on Liwag’s slip on the hardcourt as he drained a clutch buzzer-beater three at the expense of the Blazers, 73-75.

Despite the loss against the MU Cardinals, Benilde stays on top of the leaderboard with a record of 13-3.

The Blazers will face the San Beda University (SBU) Red Lions on Wednesday, Nov. 13, at the same venue with a live telecast on GTV, the Heart of Asia, and the NCAA Philippines Facebook and Youtube pages.

Box Scores:

DLS-CSB (73): Liwag 15, Cometa 10, Oli 10, Torres 10, Ynot 9, Sanchez 7, Ancheta 5, Eusebio 3, Cajucom 3, Sangco 1

MU (75): Escamis 26, Mangubat 12, Concepcion 11, Cuenco 8, Hubilla 5, Recto 5, Igliane 4, Bancale 4

Articles by Abigail Vergara

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