MANILA — San Beda University rode a searing display of late-game poise and long-range firepower to punch the last ticket to the NCAA Season 101 men’s basketball Finals, edging the College of St. Benilde Blazers, 84-81, in a nerve-wracking Game 3 on Sunday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
With their season hanging by a thread and trailing 69-72, the Red Lions detonated a pivotal 9-0 run capped by back-to-back three-pointers from Yukien Andrada and Ilonggo gunner John Bryan Sajonia, followed by an and-one finish from Agjanti Miller that swung the momentum and the lead, 78-72.
CSB refused to fold, repeatedly pulling within a single point, but San Beda refused to blink. Andrada, in a vintage performance in his final collegiate year, buried two steady free throws to rebuild an 84-81 cushion with 30 seconds left.
The Blazers still had a clean look to extend the series, but Ian Torres’ game-tying attempt from deep bounced off at the horn.
Andrada finished with a game-high 27 points, drilling seven triples in a masterful shooting night that kept San Beda alive.
“They showed heart, started out flat and medyo may jitters at medyo stiff. Pero there’s this one guy na ayaw magpatalo — si Yuki,” head coach Yuri Escueta said.
Miller returned from a one-game absence with a fiery 26-point outing, while Sajonia added 10 for the Red Lions, who now brace for a best-of-three Finals showdown with the Colegio de San Juan de Letran Knights.
“It’s going to be tough. We have to prepare well, we have to lock in, and the same character that we were able to show today — kailangan lumabas siya sa finals series namin,” Escueta said. “Hats off to the players for showing character today. I really challenged them na this is a game of character for us — what we are made of and what we have inside of us.”
Winston Ynot led CSB with 18 points. Negrense Raffy Celis posted 14, Torres had 12, while Allen Liwag and Joshua Cajucom chipped in 10 apiece./PN
