SAN BEDA ASSERTS MASTERY OVER CSB WITH GAME 1 BLOWOUT WIN

ONCE again, San Beda proved to have St. Benilde’s number. 

The Red Lions continued their mastery over the Blazers after taking a dominant 91-72 victory in Game 1 of the NCAA Season 101 semifinals on Wednesday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City. 

Janti Miller sparked an 11-2 rally to open the second quarter as the Red Lions created separation from the Blazers for good. Bryan Sajonia then put on the finishing touches, draining three consecutive three-pointers to start the fourth quarter which gave them a 74-53 lead. 

This victory was San Beda’s third over St. Benilde after sweeping the same team in the classification phase. It also moved them one win away from returning to the finals where they’ll face the winner of the Letran - Perpetual clash in the other pairing.

"Unang una sabi ko we have to be able to get rebounds. We were outrebounded in the first quarter, andami naming binigay na offensive rebound," San Beda head coach Yuri Escueta said. 

"Pag kalaban mo kasi ang CSB ang laki kasi, partida wala pa si [Raffy] Celiz, so sabi ko at the end of the first, we have to do a a better job boxing out and at the same time contesting rebounds," he added. 

"I think we were able to do a better job rebounding in the second quarter that's whay we had better opportunities to score." 

While the Red Lions were outrebounded, they made up for it with impeccable shooting from the field hitting 51.6 percent of their shots while going 12-of-28 from downtown in a sizzling offensive showing. 

Miller finished with 29 points and nine rebounds while Sajonia added 26 points, five boards and three assists. The two combined to shoot nine of 14 threes. 

Ian Torres led the way for St. Benilde with 18 points while Shawn Umali added 13 and Justine Sanchez chipped in 11. 

Allen Liwag and Tony Ynot, however, struggled heavily as they combined to shoot 5-of-26 from the field, scoring just seven and four respectively. 

The scores:

SAN BEDA 91 – Miller 29, Sajonia 26, Gonzales 11, Andrada 8, Calimag 5, Reyes 4, Lina 2, Celzo 2, Etulle 2, Puno 2, Jamora 0, Bonzalida 0

ST. BENILDE 72 – Torres 18, Umali 13, Sanchez 11, Ancheta 8, LIwag 7, Ynot 4, Morales 4, Gaspay 3, Cometa 2, Gonzaga 2, Oli 0, Cajucom 0, Eusebio 0, Moore 0

Quarters: 22-19, 48-37, 65-53, 91-72

2025-12-02T10:15:06Z