WORDS: JP Abcede of Ubelt.com
After two blowouts, it would be hard to believe that the fate of the third game would be determined by the last shot. And when San Beda College led by 20 late in the third quarter, no one would have thought that it would turn out to be a one-point game when the buzzer sounds.
It was just that as the Red Lions endured a near-meltdown in the fourth quarter and held off determined Philippine Christian University, 68-67, to finally savor their first NCAA seniors' basketball trophy since the late 1970s at the Araneta Coliseum on September 22.
Beau Belga, after scoring nine points to start the game, heaved an 18-footer that went short as Yousif Aljamal held on to the ball to let the clock run out. Before that, Pong Escobal was almost goat after throwing a wayward pass to Sam Ekwe that went to the SBC bench instead with 17 ticks still left.
Still prior to that, PCU came back to life from 20 points down, limiting the Red Lions to seven points in the payoff quarter and without a field goal for the last nine and three-fourth minutes of the match. Jason Castro was at the helm, scoring 14 points of the Dolphins' last stand.
"It became sweeter because I won at home. I won it at San Beda," said former Red Lion cager and now San Beda head coach Koy Banal. "There is no place like home. Manalo ka ng championship sa sarili mo."
Finals MVP Aljamal was king of the jungle with 23 points, 11 rebounds, and two steals. Escobal put together a statline of 15 markers, seven boards, and six assists. Rookie MVP Sam Ekwe produced seven points, 18 boards, and four blocks.
"When we won the Olympic Festival sa Taguig, I felt this team is special," the bespectacled guru prophesied. "The players are willing to put the team first above themselves. As a coach, magpapasalamat ka may players ka na ganito."
Castro was head Dolphin with 25 points on 9/21 shooting, eight rebounds, three assists, and four steals. Robby David was the other double digit scorer with ten. NCAA basketball's first rookie MVP Gabby Espinas had eight markers, nine boards, and three blocks.
"It was my fault hindi ako tumawag (timeout) ng early run (of PCU)," Banal owned up. "PCU will not lie down there and give us the ball. They will fight. "Sila iyong magandang halimbawa ng ‘It's not over until it's over.'"
The unusual game also had an odd start as Belga made nine of the first 11 points of PCU while Ekwe made all four of his freethrow attempts. Espinas then made two straight, one was a fade away that fished Ekwe for an incomplete three-point play, for a 15-10 game, six minutes elapsed.
Micah Evangelista then made things happened for San Beda as he made a dip-see-do lay in between Espinas and Ian Garrido, then fed Raymund Maggay for an incursion in the middle to tie the count.
Castro ended the shooting barrage with a fastbreak basket, faking off Jay-R Taganas, and a stop and pop, both passes coming from Derryl Santos.
After Garrido made a jumper from the top of the key, Aljamal and Escobal teamed up for a 12-0 run, 27-21, 4:16 in the second period. Angeles turned it into an eight-point ballgame with a three-pointer, the assist off Escobal.
Two transition layups by Castro and Navarro trimmed the gap down to three, but Angeles had the final say with a buzzer-beating three from approximately 30 feet.
"Napakasarap ng feeling, wala akong masabi," an obviously ecstatic Alex Angeles said, playing his last game as a Red Lion, having an output of eight points.
Relying on momentum, the Mendiola-based team stormed the gates, leading by 18 on several occasions before final finally hitting the 20-point mark when Evangelista drove at the corner and hit one from under the goal, 57-37, 2:35 in the third. Things looked bleak for the Dolphins when Escobal knocked a triple from a broken play to start the fourth quarter.
However, Castro buckled down to work, scoring the next 12 of the 14 Philippine Christian points to cut down the deficit, 58-64, 4:44 remaining. John Carlo Hermida brought to an end the scoring drought of Beda by swishing two charities.
A David three-point shot and two Liz Amparado freebies made the Taft-based contingent come closer to three, three minutes remaining. By this time, the outnumbered but still loud Dolphin crowd was whooping it up while the ocean of red stood nervously on their spot.
The two minute warning began with Ekwe picking the pocket of David that resulted into a turnover after Evangelista botched a supposed fastbreak play and Aljamal missed two putbacks, one of them cleanly rejected by Espinas. At the other end, Garrido found himself wide open, but instead of going for the shot, he passed to Espinas who was not looking as the leather sailed outside.
Angeles then found air with his attempt as Espinas collared the board. Castro then followed an Espinas three-pointer that went short to crawl nearer, 65-67, 59 seconds left.
After Ekwe clanked two freethrows, Garrido again had a bonehead moment, his shot hitting nothing but air. He then fouled Ekwe to stop the clock, who made one of two in this trip.
A two-man game between Belga and Castro had Ekwe guarding outside while Espinas posted Aljamal for an inside basket and the lead down to a solitary point, :24.8.
Expecting to milk the clock, Escobal made an errant pass to Ekwe just in front of his team's bench to give the Dolphins one last chance to pull the rug.
"I cannot dwell on that. All I did is to motivate them to make one stop," Banal uttered after the miscue. "One stop lang, alam na nila iyon. We just forget about that [and] we make a stop."
Castro found himself hounded by Angeles and Ekwe at the top of the key that he had to surrender the ball to Belga who was left unguarded from 18 feet. Belga's jump shot hit the front of the rim and the rubber sphere ended on the hands of Aljamal.
"Until I finally heard the buzzer doon lang [I felt the championship]," disclosed Banal. "May umakap lang sa akin at sabi, ‘Coach, panalo na tayo,'" was the only time it sunk into him that he finally ended his alma mater's odyssey.
I just want to thank the alumni association. All of them believed," mentioned Banal. "Wala ka nang iisiping ibang concern except to do it all."
This is Banal's third championship this year, his second as head coach. He guided Magnolia to the top in the PBL Heroes' Cup finals last February, while he is assistant to Ryan Gregorio in PBA Philippine Cup titlists Purefoods.
While the Red Lions would proceed to Hong Kong to celebrate their conquest, it is back to work for their coach. "Tomorrow I report to the Purefoods camp. I (want to) thank them for allowing me to focus here," Banal acknowledged.
