Greenies deal unbeaten Red Cubs bitter loss

MANILA, Philippines - The CSB-LSGH Greenies have done what all the others failed all season long in the 87th NCAA juniors basketball wars: Deal mighty San Beda Red Cubs their first loss in 19 games.

But for Greenies coach John Flores, there’s really not much reason to bask in their big 85-82 triumph over the Red Cubs.

“There are still two more games we need to win (to snare the title),” said Greenies coach John Flores after their morale-boosting triumph at the start of the finals.

By beating SBC in the first game, CSB-LSGH effectively reduced the title showdown to a virtual best-of-three affair. The Red Cubs enjoy thrice-to-beat advantage, thanks to their 18-0 sweep of the elims.

“Our goal was to win this game because we all knew somehow, the complexion of the series might change,” said Flores. “We’ll see (in the second game) but we’re all hoping it will change.”

Jon Villaruz fired 22 points while Thomas Torres had 14 markers, 10 boards and seven assists and Andre Paras added 13 points, including 11 plus crucial rebounds in the payoff period.

The Greenies actually enjoyed an early 41-29 lead but the Red Cubs, behind their running game, clawed back and opened a 73-67 tear.

However, Paras, son of PBA MVP Benjie Paras, led a counter-assault that gave the Greenies an 85-82 cushion going to the last 43.3 seconds.

“The boys pulled through, they defended well,” said Flores. “Even though we were down, they never gave up and were very relentless on defense. They showed the resilience, the heart of a La Sallian and proved that if you are resilient, you can actually win games against the giants.”

Limuel Patenio and Van Abatayo shot 19 and 16, respectively, for the back-to-back-seeking Red Cubs.

The scores:

CSB-LSGH 85 – Villaruz 22, Torres 14, Paras 13, Bonleon 9, Vito 8, Laigo 7, Sta. Clara 7, Barrera 3, Ramilo 2, Yap 0, Marcial 0, Mercado 0.

SBC 82 – Patenio 19, Abatayo 16, Nazareno 11, Bonsubre 10, Abarcar 7, Tolentino 6, Tongco 4, Munsayac 4, Babilonia 3, Dela Costa 2, Macapayag 0, Miranda 0.

Quarterscores: 20-12, 41-38, 63-62, 85-82.