COLLEGE of St. Benilde whipped Arellano University 100-77 yesterday to boost its hold on the top spot in the 100th NCAA basketball tournament at The Arena in San Juan.
Guard Gab Cometa sizzled with 23 points for the Blazers while forward Justine Sanchez also shone with a double-double of 14 markers and 10 rebounds.
Big man Allen Liwag made key contributions for the Taft-based crew’s third consecutive triumph with 12 points, six boards and five assists while Jhomel Ancheta and Ian Torres added eight markers each as CSB rose to 9-2.
“I really got on them, you know, we just have to do a better job taking care of the ball. We haven’t been too smart with it so, you know, today we made some adjustments,” Blazers coach Charles Tiu said. “I’ve been harping on the turnovers for weeks now so I’m glad that finally we had one game na medyo decent iyong turnovers namin.
“We keep telling them to focus on our goal, which is obviously right now to finish number 1 in the elimination round. We’ve seen so many upsets in the NCAA. It’s been really a great season,” he added.
CBS only had 11 turnovers compared to 21 when it first met the Chiefs in a 71-73 loss last Oct. 4.
In the other game, San Sebastian College nipped Jose Rizal University 87-85 to snap an eight-game losing skid.
Paeng Are starred for the Golden Stags with 28 points, five rebounds, three dimes and a steal while Ameer Aguilar, who drained a go-ahead three-pointer, finished with 13 markers and two boards.
Raymart Escobido and Reggz Gabat also provided a big lift with 17 and 11 markers, respectively, as San Sebastian improved to 3-8, the same record of the Heavy Bombers.
Raymundo and Shawn Argente paced the Heavy Bombers, who absorbed their third consecutive defeat, with 20 apiece while Guiab added 17 markers.
