By CARLO ANOLIN
St. Benilde and San Sebastian go for their second straight win when they clash Friday in the NCAA Season 98 men’s basketball tournament at the Filoil EcoOil Centre in San Juan City.
The Blazers and the Stags cap off the double-header at 3 p.m. while the Arellano Chiefs and the Perpetual Altas collide at 12 noon with the latter also going for their second consecutive victory.
On St. Benilde’s side, Robi Nayve proved to be a revelation, scoring 18 points on an impressive 4-of-6 shooting from beyond the arc in leading the Blazers to an 86-69 win over the Lyceum Pirates.
Also expected to be a marked man for the Blazers is Will Gozum who was a tower of power in the paint with 12 points and 12 rebounds.
Blazers head coach Charles Tiu, while commending Nayve’s efforts, emphasized some rooms for improvement for his wards especially in lessening their turnovers.
And Tiu braces for a more physical game when the Blazers take on the mighty Stags.
“They’re always contenders sa NCAA. Ang ganda ng programa nila every year naman nandon ‘yon. I’m sure they had a disappointing year last season for their standards,” added Tiu. “We always expect a physical, rugged game against San Sebastian… They know how to get to the basket. Hopefully, we could match their toughness and we can rebound. It’s gonna be a tough test for us.”
Meanwhile, teamwork made the dream work for San Sebastian as the likes of Itchie Altamirano, Kenneth Villapando, and Rhinwill Yambing connived to deal Arellano a 60-51 defeat last Sept. 13 despite the joint forces of Axel Doromal and Cade Flores.
Defense will be the Stags’ key to victory against the Blazers as head coach Egay Macaraya wants his players to maintain the same level of intensity they have shown against the Chiefs.
Rey Barcuma, on the other hand, is set to lead Perpetual after a 22-point outing on a 10-of-11 shooting in their 84-60 routing against Jose Rizal University last Sept. 11.
