Dolphins, Cards catch leaders

Defending champion Philippine Christian U reasserted its mastery over Perpetual Help System Dalta, fashioning out an emphatic 54-40 victory yesterday to gain a share of the lead in the 81st NCAA men’s basketball tournament at the Astrodome in Pasay City.

It was the first meeting for both teams since PCU swept Perpetual in last year’s best-of-three finals for its first-ever NCAA title since joining the league in 1998.

Like in their championship showdown, the Dolphins proved too strong for the Altas, needing just one big scoring splurge in the first quarter, 17-6, to set the tone for the rout.

The Dolphins thus joined the Letran Knights and the St. Benilde Blazers at the helm with 3-0 (win-loss) cards.

Slotman Michael Beau Belga fired 12 points and snared 15 rebounds while coming up with two steals, one assist and a shot block for the Dolphins, who also drew 10 points from forward Rob Sanz.

In the second senior’s game, Mapua uncorked a decisive 9-1 run down the stretch to score a 62-53 win over San Beda College to make it a four-way tie for the lead.

Hermes Sumalinog came away with 14 points, while Raymund Tiongco added 12, but it was the troika of Jeoferson Gonzales, Tristan Veranga and Neil Pascual who keyed the Cardinals’ fiery finish.

The Red Lions, who got 13 points from rookie guard Ogie Menor, fell to 0-4.

Despite the victory, PCU coach Junel Baculi said he was far from satisfied.

"Don’t get me wrong, of course I’m proud of my players. But definitely I’m not satisfied. I know this team is very talented, marami pang ibubuga sa tingin ko," said Baculi, who took over the coaching chores from Ato Tolentino during the off-season.

Baculi, who won seven coaching titles in the PBL, admitted lashing at his players when, after leading by nine points (25-16) at halftime, the Dolphins relaxed a bit, enabling Perpetual to close to within 26-30 with 5:43 left in the third period.

But Belga, Sanz, Jason Castro and Joel Solis combined in an 11-2 run that gave the Dolphins a 41-28 lead with 50 seconds remaining in the quarter.

"We can’t afford to have that kind of attitude. We have to stick to the system. If not, other teams will find ways to stop us," added Baculi, whose team committed 29 turnovers, which the Altas converted into 18 points.

After averaging almost 20 points last year that led to his record feat of winning both the Rookie of the Year and Most Valuable Player honors, Gabby Espinas struggled for only six points, norming only nine points in three matches.

"He has to slow down, masyadong mataas ang emotion. We’ll talk to him, kung kailangang disiplinahin gagawin namin," said Baculi of his prized big man. "He’s the leader of this team, where he goes, dun din papunta ang team."

Vladimir Joe led Perpetual with 14 points, but the flu-stricken Conrad Bauzon was held scoreless. The Altas suffered their third straight defeat.