Graphics by: Albert Dylan D. David and Crismhil S. Anselmo
Photo by: Stacy de Guzman
We are no. 1 again.
History was made at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Saturday, December 7, as the Mapúa Cardinals completed a monumental redemption arc to clinch the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Senior Men’s Basketball Season 100 championship title—a first in 33 years.
Finishing the elimination rounds with a spotless Round 2 record and sweeping the semis with a decisive win, the red and gold squad held the longest running win streak in the tournament to enter the last stretch of their redemption tour at the site of the previous season’s heartbreak.
For the first time in NCAA basketball history, the home team is facing a Taft foe in second seed De La Salle – College of Saint Benilde (CSB) Blazers for the championship title in the best-of-three finals series.
First Blood
Right off the bat, the Cards went on a heated basket exchange with the Blazers before Allen Liwag scored the first bucket to mark CSB’s first and last lead in Game 1. Asserting dominance, rookie guard Lawrence Mangubat sank two successful treys barely three minutes into the game to set the tone of the matchup.
JC Recto came off the bench with his finals glow to complete an early fastbreak with Yam Concepcion, solidifying a healthy cushion to outlast the Blazers’ comeback attempt in the second frame. Fouled from a successful shot beyond the arc, King Cardinal Clint Escamis sinks drained a four-point play to add to his hot start.
The all-around effort, alongside a powerful performance from Escamis who poured 22 points in the first half, kept the score from catching fire, 42-37.
The third quarter bucket exchange left the Blazers barely keeping up as Andrei Igliane, Chris Hubilla, and Jeco Bancale poured their own baskets to deny the Taft opponents with a chance to take the lead. The Cards ended the third frame with a nearly double-digit lead, 57-48.
John Jabonete showed up in the last quarter to drop an and-one play to give the Cards its their biggest lead at 14 points. Recto’s five and Jabonete’s eight in the final frame further doused the Blazers’ hopes for a late game comeback. Dominating with the cushion they have built since the start of the match, the Cardinals secured the crucial Game 1 win, 84-73 and lead the series, 1-0.
Escamis nearly beat his 33-point record set just one game before after contributing 30 points, four assists, and five steals in the matchup. JC Recto proved his crucial role in Mapúa’s rotation with his 15-point performance, alongside three rebounds, two assists, and one steal.
ALL OR NOTHING. The Mapúa Cardinals draw first blood on the best-of-three NCAA Season 100 Senior Men's Basketball finals. Photos by: Stacy de Guzman and Jemuel Reyes.
Done and dusted
On the brink of victory last December 7, Team Captain Escamis shared in a pre-game interview of the squad’s hopes to finally bring an end to the three-decade wait, “Bibigay na namin lahat ‘to. Gagawin namin lahat ng makakaya namin this game. Treat this game as a do-or-die game talaga —‘yun ‘yung mentality talaga.”
With an all-or-nothing mindset, the red and gold’s chemistry proved to be unstoppable. A brief challenge, however, posed a threat to the Cards as a 0-7 disadvantage left them scrambling for a way to the basket. Still, there was no way but forward for the team as Hubilla and Marc Cyrus Cuenco turned up the heat to fire in shots and trim the lead down to 7-11.
As the Cards began to run like a well-oiled machine, Recto was fouled at the 2:01 mark, sending him in the charity lane to convert two points and tie the game. Down to the last seconds of the quarter, Escamis perfectly timed his pass to Mangubat who snatched the lead, 24-23, at the buzzer.
Stepping foot in the following frame, a quick-witted steal from Escamis left the Blazers fazed as this only fueled the Cardinals to build up a 13-point lead and go all hands on deck. Since then, no attempt from the Taft squad—not even a five-to-nothing run—was enough to clip the Cardinals’ wings as the first half ended with a 45-37 score.
The game intensified at the start of the third quarter as the Blazers inched closer to momentarily halt the Cards’ momentum, forcing the Intramuros squad to shift into offense mode. This quickly resonated as Bancale’s quick fall did not hinder him from converting a crucial bucket, followed by Igliane’s long range bomb. In good shape, the team finished the quarter with a 66-56 lead.
With the taste of victory just a quarter away, the Cardinals’ talons proved too much for the Blazers as they blew the gap up to 76-64. With only five minutes left, the rookie duo Hubilla and Mangubat confirmed just how deadly their combination is as Mangubat’s wild play was backed up by his teammate’s quick retribution who drained in the unexpected shot.
Reaching their full swing, the Mapúa crowd was taken back to the closing point from the historic 1991 championship as another bucket from the charity line—sunk by Recto—marked the end of the decades-long dry spell for Mapúa, 94-82.
THE WINNING MOMENT. The Mapúa Cardinals cap off their centennial season run as the victors of the Senior Men's Basketball Tournament. Photos by: Stacy de Guzman, Azi Dayao, and Jemuel Reyes.
Earlier that day, Phenom Chris Hubilla was crowned as the centennial season’s Rookie of the Year and Freshman of the Year, while Team Captain Clint Escamis cemented his spot in the Mythical Five for the second time in a row and was named as the Finals MVP.
Behind their triumph is also the man who has witnessed it all. From being part of the roster who clinched the historic 1991 championship, to finally leading his own squad to end the drought and etch another legacy in the NCAA history, Coach Randy Alcantara was hailed as the Coach of the Year.
Standing tall and proud of their sixth championship title, the Cardinals ruled the court. 33 years in the making, and now, the glory is back where it belongs—to the Mapúa Cardinals who gave their blood and sweat, and to the community who was with them every step of the way.
Indeed, it takes a village.
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