College of St. Benilde celebrates during an NCAA Final Four victory over San Beda.–NCAA PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines–College of St. Benilde was far from the Blazers who dropped their last two crucial assignments in the preliminaries of the NCAA Season 100 men’s basketball tournament.

The Blazers summoned back their fiery form on Saturday in a decisive semifinal victory over the San Beda Red Lions, 79-63, to seal the path to the Finals.

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Allen Liwag got away with everything he wanted, practically unstoppable around the rim with 20 points and eight rebounds as the Blazers arranged a best-of-three championship showdown with the Mapua Cardinals.

READ: NCAA: Mapua back in finals behind Clint Escamis’ career game

Second #NCAAFinals in three seasons for coach Charles Tiu and CSB Blazers. @INQUIRERSports pic.twitter.com/mH3Se43h1n

— Rommel Fuertes Jr. (@MeloFuertesINQ) November 23, 2024

“Every time we come off a loss, we make sure to find ways to bounce back. We made sure our players were motivated,” said College of St. Benilde coach Charles Tiu after securing a second trip to the Finals in three seasons.

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The Blazers had gone through a pair of frustrating defeats at the hands of the Cardinals and the Lyceum Pirates in winding up their elimination-round campaign prior to the Final Four face-off with the Lions.

“Our mindset was to finish it in one game. We don’t want them (Lions) to gain their confidence because they’re the defending champions,” said Liwag, this season’s top MVP contender.

The 6-foot-6 Liwag simply connived with Jhomel Ancheta and Tony Ynot in the opening quarter for the Blazers, who instantly mounted a huge run and never looked back in dethroning the Lions, last season’s champions.

Ynot shone against his former school, delivering 17 points on top of four assists, three rebounds, one block and a steal.

READ: NCAA: Benilde repeats over San Beda to close in on top spot

Jomel Puno failed to see action due to a sprained ankle he suffered during San Beda’s final elimination match against San Sebastian, creating a void for the Lions in the middle that Liwag readily cashed in.

The Blazers also managed to restrain San Beda from wreaking havoc at the three-point zone, limiting the Lions to only two converted shots beyond the arc out of 26 attempts.

Shooters Yukien Andrada and Emman Tagle as well as Bryan Sajonia bungled all of their five shots each from that range as the Lions just couldn’t get out of a deep hole early on.

AJ Royo had 14 points and Penny Estacio added 10 for the Lions, who will face the Lyceum Pirates in a battle for third place on December 7 prior to Game 2 of the championship series.

Game 1 of the Mapua-College of St. Benilde Finals is set December 1 also at Smart Araneta Coliseum.

The Scores:

ST. BENILDE 79 – Liwag 20, Ynot 17, Ancheta 11, Sanchez 9, Cometa 5, Turco 4, Sangco 3, Oli 3, Eusebio 3, Torres 2, Ondoa 2, Cajucom 0, Morales 0, Serrano 0, Jarque 0 

SAN BEDA 63 – Royo 14, Estacio 10, Andrada 7, Sajonia 6, RC Calimag 6, Bonzalida 5, Lina 4, Payosing 4, Tagle 3, Gonzales 2, Songcuya 2, Celzo 0, Tagala 0, Jalbuena 0, Richi Calimag 0 

Quarterscores: 25-14, 53-27, 70-42, 79-63