College of Saint Benilde survived a late surge from young Jose Rizal University, taking a 73-65 win to close out Round 1 of the NCAA Season 101 Seniors Basketball Tournament’s group phase on Sunday at the Filoil Centre.
The Blazers seized a temporary lead in Group B with a 3-1 record, while the Heavy Bombers dropped to 2-2, settling in third place.
Benilde continued to cope without reigning Most Valuable Player Allen Liwag and team captain Gab Cometa, both sidelined due to dengue.
“We just had to weather the storm,” said Blazers head coach Charles Tiu.
“We missed four key players, they’ve been out. Half of the team was sick, and we couldn’t practice over the last couple of days, but we wanted to win for them.”
Justine Sanchez delivered another stellar performance, finishing with 17 points on 70-percent shooting, along with six rebounds, five assists, and a block.
But it was former Ateneo Blue Eagle Raffy Celis who led the charge, scoring 20 points while adding five rebounds and four steals.
“I thought Raffy Celis was huge, and Justine Sanchez made plays. But defensively, we were solid,” Tiu said, as the Blazers held a potent JRU offense to just 33.8-percent from the field.
After a 56-all deadlock midway through the game, Sanchez and Celis combined to give Benilde a 63-58 cushion.
Rookie Sean Salvador tried to spark JRU’s offense, but the duo kept delivering, securing Benilde’s third straight win after an opening-day loss to San Beda.
“Their kids are young, but they are legit,” Tiu added, referring to JRU.
Benilde will now face Arellano on October 19 to begin their crossover round campaign.
Meanwhile, Salvador paced the Heavy Bombers with 13 points, though it took 13 attempts to reach that mark.
Batchmate Sanlea Peñaverde added 11 points, while Ivan Panapanaan hauled in 13 rebounds and two blocks.
Jose Rizal University will next face San Sebastian on October 15.
The Scores:
Benilde 73 – Celis 20, Sanchez 17, Morales 7, Ancheta 5, Umali 5, Oli 5, Moore 5, Gaspay 3, Eusebio 2, Cajucom 2, Ynot 1, Galas 1, Jalalon 0.
Jose Rizal 65 – Salvador 13, Penaverde 11, Lozano 9, Argente 9, Benitez 7, Panapanaan 5, Laurenaria 5, Garupil 4, Herrera 2, Duque 0, Sarmiento 0, Castillo 0.
Quarterscores: 22-19, 42-34, 55-51, 73-65.
