Dela Cruz NCAA player of the week

MANILA, Philippines - PBA-bound Arthur dela Cruz hopes to close out his amateur stint on a championship note, vowing to help San Beda in its crack at a record sixth straight crown in the NCAA.

“I want to help San Beda win another championship before entering the PBA,” said dela Cruz, who was picked seventh overall by Blackwater in the recent rookie draft.

“If I can win the MVP award, it’ll be a bonus,” he added.

Dela Cruz is on track for a first MVP plum as he trails Mapua’s Allwell Oraeme in what looms to be a tight battle for the coveted individual crown. The San Beda top gun landed in the top five of three categories – 20.36 points (second), 12.09 boards (fourth) and 6.09 assists (third) after the first round elims.

He then unleashed a 30-point, 10-rebound effort in San Beda’s 96-84 victory over Emilio Aguinaldo last Tuesday, spiking his superb outing with five assists and four steals.

In the Lions’ 89-63 rout of the St. Benilde Blazers last Friday, dela Cruz chalked up 17 points, 10 caroms and seven assists and ran away with the Accel Quantum/3XVI-NCAA Press Corps Player of the Week honors.

Dela Cruz beat Letran’s Mark Cruz and Lyceum’s Cameroonian big man Jean Victor Nguidjol for the weekly plum.