ALREADY out of contention, Mapua last night found a silver lining to what had been a nightmare of a season.
And it came against the league’s hottest team.
The Cardinals ended 13 games of futility in style, stunning league leader and defending champion San Beda, 81-76, for only their second victory in the 89th NCAA basketball tournament at Filoil Flying V Arena in San Juan.
With Jessie Saitanan finding his range and the rest of the squad stifling San Beda’s offensive juggernaut, the Cardinals whipped up a storm in the fourth quarter to snap the Red Lions’ six-game winning run.
Saitanan finished with 18 points, including 10 in the final period as the Cardinals rallied from an 11-point deficit to complete the biggest upset in the league this season.
“Winning against San Beda makes me triple happy,” said an ecstatic coach Atoy Co, whose team’s last win came way back July 1 when the Cardinals beat the San Sebastian Stags, 104-99, in overtime.
Despite the loss, the Lions kept the lead at 13-3.
In the second game, San Sebastian inched closer to a Final Four berth after subduing Jose Rizal U, 71-62.
CJ Perez fired 23 points on top of eight rebounds as the Stags notched their ninth win in 15 games that put them within a victory of nailing at least a playoff for a semifinal spot.
The Bombers fell to their ninth loss in 15 games for seventh spot, pushing them further to the brink of elimination.
The scores:
MAPUA 81—Saitanan 18, Brana 14, Isit 11, Magisgay 9, Cantos 9, Eriobu 8, Ighalo 7, Estrella 5, Biteng 0, Gabo 0, Gonzalez 0, Magtoto 0.
SAN BEDA 76—Dela Cruz 23, Dela Rosa 17, Adeogun 8, Koga 7, Amer 7, Abarcar 5, Ludovice 3, Villaruz 2, Abatayo 2, Pascual 2, D. Semerad 0, Mendoza 0, Sara 0, A. Semerad 0.
Quarters: 13-24, 35-39, 53-64, 81-76
Second Game
SAN SEBASTIAN 71—Perez 23, Guinto 11, Dela Cruz 10, De Vera 7, Ortuoste 7, Tano 5, Rebollos 4, Vergara 2, Trinidad 2, Balucanag 0, Gusi 0, Aquino 0.
JRU 62— Paniamogan 15, Dela Paz 12, Lasquety 10, Pontejos 8, Sanchez 7, Benavides 4, Mabulac 4,
Abanto 2, Salaveria 0, Grospe 0.
Quarters: 12-7, 38-21, 53-38, 71-62