St. Benilde leaned on the returning Allen Liwag to pull past Emilio Aguinaldo College, 87-82, and secure a twice-to-beat advantage in Group B of the NCAA Season 101 men’s basketball tournament on Friday at San Juan Arena.
The Blazers ended the eliminations on a three-game winning streak, finishing with a 9-4 record.
‘Now, it’s back to zero. The real challenge comes,’ coach Charles Tiu said. ‘In this format, like they said, anyone has a chance and I think that’s what we’ll get.’
Liwag, returning from a shoulder injury, led Benilde with 16 points, eight rebounds, two assists, two steals, and a block. Matthew Oli and Jio Gonzaga added 14 and 12 points, respectively, to support the reigning NCAA MVP.
EAC remained at the bottom of Group B with a 4-9 finish, though Jude Bagay and Aldeo Lucero went down swinging with 25 and 20 points.
Benilde is set to face Group A’s third seed Mapua in the quarterfinals, a rematch of last season’s Finals, after the Cardinals fell to Arellano, 62-58, earlier Friday.