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JOSE
RIZAL University (JRU) leaned on ace playmaker Marc
Terence Cagoco and its starters in posting a 79-74 upset
of defending champion San Beda College Wednesday in the
84th National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)
men’s basketball tournament at the Cuneta Astrodome in
Pasay City.
Cagoco,
a five-foot-eight combo guard from Davao City, poured in
18 points—all three-pointers—and steered the Heavy
Bombers’ attack, particularly down the stretch, to deal
the Red Lions their first defeat while extending their
winning streak to three games after starting the season
with back-to-back losses.
“This is
a morale-boosting win for us,” said winning coach Ariel
Vanguardia. “Every time we beat the champion, we feel
like a champion also.”
It was
JRU’s first win over San Beda since the second round of
the 2004 season.
Slotman
James Sena also finished with 18 points, while John
Wilson, Ildefonso Bulangis and Jay Nocom combined for 26
markers for the Mandaluyong-based Heavy Bombers, who
dropped a 7-2 bomb to open the fourth quarter that
expanded their precarious 54-52 advantage into a 61-54
lead with 6:51 left.
They
then held off every Red Lions’ rally en route to the
biggest upset so far in the season.
“Our
triples did it for us, and we made 27 offensive rebounds
that really gave us the confidence to shoot even from
the three-point area,” explained Vanguardia.
“I told
them to keep shooting from the outside and tighten more
on our defense. Luckily, our defense and offense worked
well in the fourth period,” added the third-year mentor.
Ogie
Menor, last year’s Finals Most Valuable Player, and Pong
Escobal each scored 16 points, while Borgy Hermida had
10 to pace the Red Lions, who saw their perfect mark
ended at five games. That left the Letran Knights, who
were playing the Mapua Cardinals at press time, as the
only unbeaten team in the field.
Nigerian
behemoth Sam Ekwe hauled down 11 rebounds and scored
eight points for the three-peat-seeking dribblers from
Mendiola—who are also in danger of having their 74-51
win over the College of Saint Benilde (CSB) Blazers last
July 18 reversed by the NCAA board on the latter’s
protest over Ekwe’s wearing a wrong uniform during their
match.
The NCAA
Management Committee has yet to decide on CSB’s
complaint.
JRU will
try to pad their winning streak to four games against
Mapua tomorrow, before winding up its first round
assignment against Philippine Christian University on
Wednesday.
San Beda
will take on Letran on Wednesday to complete its
first-round schedule.
In the
juniors division, the San Beda Red Cubs downed the JRU
Light Bombers, 89-81, in the first game, and the Letran
Squires outclassed the comebacking Mapua Red Robins,
136-53, in the second game. |
