St. Francis advance to quarters.
Saint Francis of Assisi College advanced to the quarterfinals in style by blasting University of Makati, 73-58, in the National Capital Region Universities and Colleges of Luzon Athletic Association (NCRUCLAA) at the Colegio de San Lorenzo Gym on Wednesday in Quezon City.
The Doves exploited their size advantage to repel the herons’ repeated comebacks and close out the elims with a 5-1 record.
John Michael Cruz started the onslaught for Saint Francis that saw them outscore the Herons 24-6 in the second quarter for a commanding 36-18 lead at halftime.
Seldom-used Kenji Manzanilla also shined in that period by scoring 8 of his game-high 16 points while Cruz added 11 points.
Cruz and fellow big man Chris Lalata continued to pound the Herons pad their lead to 56-33 going into the final 10 minutes.
Cruz completed a double-double performance with 11 rebounds while Lalata was a rebound short of a double-double with 11 points and nine rebounds.
The Doves will face Philippine State College of Aeronautics for the No. 2 seeding in the next round.
Scores:
SAINT FRANCIS 73 – Manzanilla 16, Cruz 11, Lalata 11, Castro 11, Parcero 6, Lanoy 5, Derama 4, Madrid 4, Ramos 2, Chu 2, Cenita 2, Guevarra 0, Cristobal 0, Ceguerra 0.
MAKATI 58 – Ongpauco 15, Lapasaran 11, Estaris 8, Patricio 8, Burata 5, Dabbay 4, Lopez 3, Viray 2, Redoblado 2, Maneja 0, Fermilan 0, Obiar 0, Urbano 0, Sarmiento 0.
Quarters: 17-12, 36-18, 56-33, 73-58.