Allen Liwag posts another double-double as St. Benilde keeps its hold of the NCAA top spot, while Marc Cuenca and Clint Escamis combine for 51 points to power Mapua to a share of second place
MANILA, Philippines – The College of St. Benilde Blazers and the Mapua Cardinals vented their ire on their respective opponents with twin blowout victories in the NCAA Season 100 men’s basketball tournament at the FilOil EcoOil Centre on Friday, September 27.
Coming off a narrow 71-69 loss to the Letran Knights in their last game, the Blazers bounced back big with a 103-78 rout of the LPU Pirates.
Double-double machine Allen Liwag remained a force to be reckoned with as he powered the Blazers anew with 22 points on an efficient 10-of-12 field goal clip and 12 rebounds.
Justine Sanchez backstopped Liwag with a perfect outing of 18 points on 5-of-5 shooting and 8-of-8 clip from the foul line, while John Morales scored 10 as CSB became the first team to breach the 100-point territory in Season 100.
The Blazers overcame an explosive performance by LPU guard Mac Guadana, who fired a game-high 26 points in the losing cause.
CSB kept its hold of the No. 1 spot as it improved to 5-1, while LPU saw its fiery three-game winning run snapped and fell to an even 3-3 record.
Similar to CSB, Mapua quickly returned to its winning ways in Season 100 after rolling past the hapless San Sebastian Stags in the opening game, 91-72.
After bowing to LPU, 96-81, in its previous outing, Mapua rode on the hot hands of Marc Cuenco and Clint Escamis, who combined for 51 of the Cardinals’ 91 points.
Cuenco went off for a career-best 26 points on 10-of-15 shooting, while Escamis, the reigning league MVP, poured in 25 markers.
Rookie Chris Hubilla chipped in 12 points for the Cardinals as they created a three-way tie with the Perpetual Altas and the Letran Knights at the second spot with a 4-2 card.
On the other side, Tristan Felebrico tallied a near double-double of 20 points and 9 rebounds, while Rafael Are contributed 12 markers for the Stags, who suffered their fifth consecutive loss after a once-promising 2-0 start to the season.
The Scores
First Game
Mapua 91 – Cuenco 26, Escamis 25, Hubilla 12, Bancale 6, Igliane 6, Jabonete 6, Concepcion 4, Mangubat 0, Abdulla 0, Fermin 0, Pantaleon 0, Agemenyi 0.
San Sebastian 72 – Felebrico 20, Are 17, Aguilar 9, Cruz 8, Escobido 7, Gabat 3, Suico 3, Velasco 2, Lintol 2, Gabat 1, Pascual 0, Ricio 0, Ramilo 0.
Quarters: 22-12, 39-35, 65-48, 91-72.
Second Game
CSB 103 – Liwag 22, Sanchez 18, Morales 10, Torres 9, Cometa 9, Sangco 8, Eusebio 7, Galas 7, Ondoa 4, Ynot 3, Cajucom 3, Serrano 3, Carillo 0, Turco 0, Oli 0.
LPU 78 – Guadana 26, Montano 14, Barba 12, Villegas 6, Penafiel 4, Culanay 4, Paulo 4, Aviles 3, Cunanan 2, Gordon 2, Palingayan 1, Moralejo 0, Daileg 0, Caduyac 0, Panelo 0.
Quarters: 32-22, 59-40, 80-59, 103-78.
– Rappler.com
