By Ricky Manliguis
La
Consolacion Colleges Manila secured its third successive Inter-Scholastic Athletic
Association (ISAA) seniors basketball title, carving out an 84-70 win over ICCT
Colleges in the winner-take-all Game 3 Wednesday at the Trinity University of
Asia (TUA) gym.
Banking on
another fourth-quarter rally against a tough nut in the Blue Dragons, the Blue
Royals thus completed a basketball “triple-double” this season, after their
juniors counterparts the Baby Blue Royals also achieved a trifecta after
nabbing the juniors title last Saturday.
Christian Alonzo
once again exploded for the Blue Royals, finishing with 22 points with six
steals on 8-of-17 shooting. He was later named the Finals Most Valuable Player
with averages of 24.3 points, 5.3 rebounds, 4.7 steals, and 3.0 assists in the
three games.
Kenneth
Glariana backstopped Alonzo with 18 points, six boards, three assists, and
three steals in his final game for La Consolacion, while twin towers John Michael
Urmeneta and Kenneth Castillo combined for 23 markers and 14 rebounds.
Jun Reign
Baculio led ICCT with 19 points and six steals, while Jeciel Torres contributed
16 and six boards. Mark Angelo Magno cashed in a double-double of 11 markers and
10 boards.
LCCM waxed
hot early on, building leads by as many as nine points. But ICCT refused to
give in and even threatened to grab the lead at crucial moments of the match. Yuri
Virtucio’s lay-up brought the Blue Dragons to within two points, 66-68, with five
minutes left in the fourth, only for the Blue Royals to instigate a 16-4
finishing kick to put the game away for good.
“We were able to execute the game plan, we pressured
the ball really well, especially in the fourth quarter. As with Game 2, the
boys’ conditioning really played a key role to us in this game,” said LCCM
coach Kenyon Chee in a post-game interview.
Chee also
stated that despite this season being a transition period because of the
pandemic, the team was able to build a well-cohesive line-up to successfully
defend the title.
“It’s tough
to lose key players to graduation, (Kenneth) Glariana is a mythical team member
who was instrumental to us all season. But hopefully with the coming of new
players and our remaining guys, we could continue performing well in the coming
seasons,” he later added.
ICCT head
tactician Arvin Guinto praised his wards for their gallant effort throughout
the season.
“For me, we
overachieved this season. To think that La Consolacion beat their opponents by
a huge margin in the games before the finals, we managed to beat them by a
point and gave a tough fight in the finals. I am happy with the boys’ effort,
they displayed heart,” he said in a separate interview.
“Well, I
hope next season we could get a big man, but we will still be hungry and will
not stop until we get our ultimate goal which is the championship.”
Urmeneta
was later adjudged as the season MVP in the awarding ceremonies after the game.
He was joined in the Mythical team by Glariana, Baculio, Magno, and WCC ATC’s
Ivan Salinel. Castillo was named the Defensive Player of the Season.
LCCM’s John
Kelly Aloro got the Juniors Season MVP honors, while Finals MVP Lance Siena
brought home the Defensive Player honors. Aloro and Siena were joined in the
Mythical Team by the AirLink duo of Gerlis Bulilan and Paul Resara, and Treston’s
Ivanne Malay.
The Scores:
La Consolacion- Manila (84) – Alonzo
22, Glariana 18, Urmeneta 12, Castillo 11, Cabal 8, Cerezo 8, Ober 3, Postanes
2, Pineda 0.
ICCT (70) – Baculio
19, Torres 16, Magno 11, Rebollido 9, Esguerra 5, Soria 3, Mapua 2, Camposo 2, Arimado
2, Virtucio 2, Reyes 0, Mahomoc 0, Buban 0, Castro 0, Bencalo 0.
Quarterscores:
23-14, 49-43, 68-62, 84-70.
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