NCAA-leading College of St. Benilde too much for hapless JRU

College of St. Benilde’s Allen Liwag powers his way inside against JRU in NCAA Season 100.-NCAA PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines–College of St. Benilde blew Jose Rizal University apart in a crippling third-quarter run to prevail, 80-65, on Sunday in the NCAA Season 100 men’s basketball tournament.

The Blazers were simply ruthless, tearing the game apart quickly after the halftime break as if there was no defensive effort from the Heavy Bombers at all.

Guards Ian Torres and Jhomel Ancheta orchestrated the CSB run by dropping threes and slithering moves in the lane as the Blazers smothered the enemy on the other end.

READ: NCAA: Gab Cometa’s career game leads Benilde revenge win

And when big man Allen Liwag got his touches around the rim, there was no looking back with their lead ballooning to as much as 30.

“Filming is an important part of our preparation. The coaches were able to point out our mistakes and what needs to be done on the court,” said Liwag in Filipino, the leading season MVP candidate with double-double averages in points and rebounds.

Liwag banged in 12 points and plucked down 11 rebounds on top of three assists and a steal for the Blazers, whose fourth consecutive victory netted them win No. 10 in 12 games overall.

Torres posted a career-high 16 points that went along with two assists and two steals while Justin Sanchez and Ancheta contributed 10 and nine points each.

“We practiced those adjustments that our coaches told us and we were able to execute them in the game,” said Liwag.

READ: NCAA: Benilde beats Baste, Letran rookie out of awards race

After building a nine-point advantage at the half on a blinding fast Gab Cometa drive, the Blazers limited the opposition to a measly seven points in the third while torching the Bombers with 26 points in that span.

It didn’t help that JRU coach Louie Gonzales resumed business after serving a one-game suspension after the Bombers absorbed their fourth straight loss to accompany the San Sebastian Stags at the bottom with a 3-9 record.

Joshua Guiab managed to compile 17 points and Shawn Argente tallied 14 for the Bombers, who expended more energy throwing bricks than making them by bungling 43 of their shots out of 66 attempts.

The scores:

ST. BENILDE 80 – Torres 16, Liwag 12, Sanchez 10, Ancheta 9, Eusebio 9, Oli 6, Cajucom 5, Cometa 4, Ondoa 4, Serrano 2, Turco 2, Morales 1, Sangco 0, Jarque 0, Galas 0

JRU 65 – Guiab 17, Argente 14, Raymundo 13, Pangilinan 8, De Leon 4, Bernardo 4, Mosqueda 3, Lozano 2, Samontanes 0, Panapanaan 0, Sarmiento 0, Ferrer 0 Quarter scores: 21-16, 42-33, 68-40, 80-65