WITH THEIR SEASON on the line, the San Beda Red Lions evened out the championship series against the Mapúa University (MU) Cardinals in game two of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Finals, 71-65, last December 10 at the SM Mall of Asia (MOA) Arena.
Finding themselves in another twice-to-beat disadvantage after Mapúa took game one of the series, San Beda began the second game of the series strong as AJ Royo set an aggressive tempo for the Lions from the opening tip.
From the first possession, Jacob Cortez scored a quick two-pointer in the perimeter followed by two successive markers from beyond the arc, courtesy of Yukien Andrada and Peter Alfaro, to pull away with eight points in the first two minutes of the game.
But the action was back and forth as the Cardinals closed the gap down to one point at the end of the first quarter, 20-19. Opening the second quarter, a Clint Escamis basket from deep, 20-22, the Lions reclaimed the lead through field goals from Cortez and James Payosing and two freebies from Royo, 29-23, with seven minutes left in the quarter.
In the closing minutes of the first half, the Mendiola-based squad earned their biggest lead of 15 points off of a Cortez free throw, 38-23. After completing their 15-0 run, a Mapúa timeout was called. Following the timeout, both squads went back and forth before ending the half at 42-30.
In a grueling start to the second half, the Red Lions gave up 23 points to Mapúa while the Cardinals limited their hot scoring to only six points as the Lions looked towards the closing quarter down, 48-53.
With the championship at stake, the Lions and Cardinals went back and forth in the final quarter of game two, with the latter keeping their five-point advantage against San Beda.
It was not until the 4:27 mark in the fourth that the Mighty Red School regained the lead as Cortez knocked down a crucial three-point marker to lead, 62-61, after four offensive rebounds from Clifford Jopia.
From that point on, the Red Lions never looked back as Payosing scored a putback to force another Mapúa timeout, after which Cortez went for the heat check to knock down a step back triple to extend the lead, 67-61, with just three minutes left in the game.
Sharing the heat of the “Cool Cub,” Andrada sank a dagger from beyond the arc to keep the Mapúa away in the match, 70-63, as the last two minutes were announced.
Despite the team’s free throw woes, team captain Alfaro managed to sink in one last from the charity stripe for San Beda, icing out game two, 71-65, and extending the series to a game three for the 22,465 fans in attendance at the Arena.
Following the frustration of the Red Lions in game one, Red Lions head coach Yuri Escueta said that they adjusted after the first game. “Regarding officiating I always tell my players and team to control what we can, and officiating is something that we cannot control,” said Coach Yuri.
Escueta also lauded the team’s exemplary performance in their do-or-die match against the Cardinals. The master tactician mentioned that Cortez is “special” whenever it comes to comeback matches.
On the other hand, AJ Royo was also commended with regards to his huge improvement, with his court efficiency of positive 26. “Sabi ko nga napanaginipan ko lang talaga… In fairness kay AJ, he’s been practicing really well, ganda ng inensayo niya. Kaya he made me really think to start him.”
Royo, the two-way general, said that his performance today is all about trusting the system “and gameplan ni coach tsaka mga defensive schemes.”
“I hope to see you next week, game three because we’re gonna raise the NCAA championship trophy,” ended Jacob Cortez as he invites the whole Bedan community in the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Sunday, December 17.
(with Dencel Mauri Fernandez)
Quarter Scores: 20-19, 42-30, 48-53, 71-65
San Beda 71: Cortez 21, Puno 9, Andrada 9, Jopia 8, Alfaro 7, Royo 6, Cuntapay 5, Payosing 4, Tagle 2, Gonzales 0, Visser 0
Mapúa 65: Escamis 15, Recto 14, Hernandez 13, Soriano 10, Cuenco 5, Rosillo 5, Bonifacio 3, Asuncion 0, Dalisay 0, Bancale 0