San Beda overcomes slow start to defeat St. Benilde
By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
Reporter
THE defending champions San Beda Red Lions notched their ninth win in 10 games in Season 93 of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) yesterday albeit needing to buck a slow start to beat College of St. Benilde Blazers, 72-58.
Found themselves in a close fight early in the contest, the Lions turned to their team leaders to bail them out of a tough bind before putting their foot on the gas pedal and pulled away from the Blazers to keep their record solid with only a lone defeat.
St. Benilde was very competitive in the opening period led by its big man Clement Leutcheu to take the quarter, 19-18.
The Blazers would continue to make it hard for the Lions to start the second canto, going back and forth with San Beda and kept it close.
But led by guard Robert Bolick, Jayvee Mocon and Davon Potts, the Lions would pull away as the quarter drew to a close to seize the lead by the halftime break, 41-28.
In the third period, the San Beda juggernaut continued with more San Beda players getting involved in the attack.
The Lions made it a 20-point lead, 53-33, with four minutes remaining before taking it to as much as 25 with 30 seconds remaining, 63-38.
The period ended with San Beda ahead, 63-41.
St. Benilde tried to rally back, led anew by Leutcheu, cutting its deficit down to 14 points, 71-57, with three minutes remaining.
A lull ensued after a scuffle happened when Carlo Young gave a flagrant foul on Bolick with 2:28 remaining in the game.
Young was ejected thereafter for an unsportsmanlike foul and so did San Beda’s Bolick and Clint Doliguez, who stepped into the court, for “disqualifying fouls.”
When action resumed, San Beda just held things down and secured the win.
Bolick led San Beda with 14 points, going three-of-seven from beyond the arc, to go along with a league season-high 11 assists and seven rebounds before exiting the game prematurely.
The ejection given to him, however, looms to be big one as it leaves him ineligible to win any individual awards this NCAA season as well as having to sit out their next game.
Potts had 12 points while Mocon had a double-double of 10 points and 10 rebounds on top of three blocks.
Leutcheu, meanwhile, was the leader for the Blazers in the losing cause, finishing with 25 points, on a solid 57% shooting, with 15 rebounds and a block.
JJ Domingo and Rene Sta. Maria each had eight points for St. Benilde.
Quite understandably, San Beda coach Boyet Fernandez was mad with the way the game ended that had his floor leader Bolick being ejected.
“Robert was the one who received the hard foul yet he was punished and ejected. Unbelievable,” the coach said.
The win improved San Beda to 9-1, still just a rung below the league-leading Lyceum Pirates (9-0), who were to play later yesterday against the tailending Mapua Cardinals.
The Blazers, meanwhile, dropped to 2-8.
