Mapua, drawing stellar games from Brian Lacap and Warren Bonifacio, added the 10th Freego Cup to its growing collection of titles with an 84-73 win over La Salle Greenhills on Thursday at the Buddhacare gym in Quezon City.
With Lacap waxing hot from the outside and Bonifacio coming through with powerful inside plays, the Red Robins
shattered a 66-all count with a decisive run early in the fourth on the way to winning the crown.
Lacap highlighted his 21-point show with five triples while Bonifacio was almost unstoppable in the shaded lane with 17 points and 14 boards.
Aside from their deadly sniping, the Red Robins were rock-solid defensively, holding the Greenies to just seven points in the payoff period of the event also sponsored by Smart, Powerhouse and Home Depot.
The title win bodes well for Mapua’s title-retention bid in the coming NCAA.
Clint Escamis and Eric Jabel were likewise impressive as they contributed 15 and 10 points, respectively, for the Red Robins who topped the single-round elims with a 7-1 card.
They advanced to the one-game title match with the Greenies without a sweat as Jose Rizal University forfeited their semis duel due to injuries to key players.
For a while, the Greenies, earned the right to face the Red Robins after downing the National University Bullpups, 97-92., after taking an 18-10 lead at the end of the first quarter.
But the Red Robins gathered momentum in the second quarter where they outscored their Greenies 22-10, for a 52-45 halftime lead.
Sydney Mosqueda led five LSGH players in double figures with 18 points and 9 boards.