Dolphins, Knights bring down rivals to remain unscathed

Defending champion Philippine Christian University threw a defensive blanket on St. Benilde in the second half as it scored a come-from-behind 63-49 victory yesterday to stretch its win run to six in the 81st NCAA basketball tournament at the Astrodome.

Letran later matched PCU’s hot start with a thrilling 69-67 victory over Mapua as Boyet Bautista buried a running jumper with 6.1 seconds left in the contest.

The Cardinals actually had a chance to send the game to overtime or steal the win with a three-pointer but Tristan Veranga threw an errant inbound pass from the backcourt that sealed their second loss against four victories.

Last year’s rookie MVP Gabby Espinas came through with another solid effort as he finished with game-highs 18 points and 17 rebounds although it was diminutive guard Ramon Retaga who sparked the big third quarter run that turned things around for the Dolphins.

Retaga exploded with five triples, including three in the third quarter that saw the Taft-based cagers launch a series of runs that broke the back of the Blazers. He finished with 16 points.

The Dolphins also held their own in defense as they held the Blazers to just 17 points the last two quarters after the latter scored 32 points in the first half.

"We’re into a system wherein we drew our strength from playing tough defense," said PCU coach Junel Baculi, who is seeking his first title as a collegiate coach after winning six in the Philippine Basketball League.

Truly, PCU drew strength from its big men, who plucked a total of 55 rebounds, including 36 on the defensive end as against 44 by St. Benilde. The Dolphins also forced the Blazers to muff 49 of the 68 shots the latter took in woeful 27-percent shooting performance.

More importantly, PCU’s resolute defense translated into good offense in the second half.

"Sa defense talaga kami kumukuha ng offense," added Baculi.