31 July 2018
By Maxine Louise Lagman
Manila, Philippines – The Mapua University stave off a slight scare from the Arellano University late in the fourth and claim a 91-83 win in the NCAA Season 94 senior’s basketball tournament, Tuesday at the Filoil Flying V Center in San Juan.
Mapua Cardinals is now tied with Arellano and College of St. Benilde in the team standings with a 2-2 record.
The Cardinals took their time creating a comfortable cushion from the Chiefs and even led by as much as 18 points in the third quarter, 64-46, thanks to back-to-back baskets from Christian Bunag and Cedric Pelayo.
However, Arellano rallied in the final frame to cut the lead to five, 80-85, with 2:34 minutes left in the game.
But a Warren Bonifacio and Pelayo tandem silenced the Chief’s crowd as they poured in the crucial baskets to stop Mapua from bleeding. Noah Lugo then chipped in the last score to seal the win.
Bunag led Mapua with a double-double record of 16 points and 10 rebounds, while Eric Jobel had 15 markers.
Pelayo chipped in 13 points off the bench, while Bonifacio and Lugo contributed 12 points each for the win.
Despite a game-high 25 points of Levi dela Cruz, it was still not enough to get them the win.
The Scores:
MU 91 – Bunag 16, Jabel 15, Pelayo 13, Lugo 12, Bonifacio 12, Victoria 9, Biteng 6, Gamboa 6, Aguirre 2, Pajarillo 0
AU 83 – Dela Cruz 25, Alban 12, Dela Torre 10, Alcoriza 9, Segura 8, Concepcion 6, Ongolo Ongolo 4, Serajosef 3, Canete 2, Santos 2, Villoria 2, Codinera 0, Sacramento 0, Abdurassad 0, Bayla 0
Quarter scores: 31-22, 52-40, 69-57, 91-83
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