Defending champion Mapua hiked its win streak to three after escaping San Sebastian, 77-72, in overtime at San Juan Arena on Tuesday, Nov. 18.
Not only did the Cardinals extend their string of wins for a 7-5 record in Group A of the NCAA Season 101 men’s basketball tournament, they also kept their top seed hopes alive.
Mapua moved just a game behind Perpetual Help, which slipped toan 8-4 record after being caught in the middle of a three-game losing streak.
Star guard Clint Escamis, though, made sure not to let the numbers get ahead of themselves.
“I feel like eto na ‘yong right time to peak, nakukuha namin ‘yong rhythm namin at nag-gegel na ‘yong team. Nakakatuwa man pero ‘di pa rin kami kampante,” he said.
“Gusto pa din namin magback-to-back. ‘Yon ‘yong main goal namin. We’ll celebrate now and go back to work tomorrow and prepare for AU.”
Cyrus Cuenco led the Cardinals’ escape of the Golden Stags with 15 points, five rebounds and three steals.
Escamis helped the cause with an all-around game of 14 points, five rebounds and three assists.
San Sebastian, meanwhile, ended its elimination round with a 3-10 record and will be facing either Arellano (5-6) or Lyceum (3-8) in a knockout play-in game for the fourth seed to determine which squad will enter the crossover quarterfinals.
The Golden Stags, however, still went down swinging with the efforts of Jose Lumanag and Jhuniel Dela Rama, who finished with 16 and 14 points, respectively.
The scores:
MAPÚA 77 – Cuenco 15, Escamis 14, Sapasap 11, Concepcion 8, Lazarte 7, Igliane 6, Recto 5, Delos Reyes 5, Nitura 3, Gonzales 3, Callangan 0, Reyes 0.
SAN SEBASTIAN 72 – Lumanag 16, Dela Rama 14, Gabat 11, Castor 9, Ricio 7, Nepacena 6, Cuajao 6, Segovia 3, Dimaunahan 0.
Quarters: 23-13, 44-28, 52-47, 65-65 (reg.), 77-72 (OT)
