The Numbers That Weathered the Tigers' Comeback: Red Lions Clinch a Final 4 Berth with Win

For a team who was on a verge of missing out a spot in the PCCL Final 4, the San Beda Red Lions faced the situation with the exact mindset they needed to have against Soulemane Chabi-Yo and the rest of the UST Growling Tigers. They defended UST's snipers early on and fought for every single possession on both ends. They even finished the first half with a 12-point lead after a Kwekuteye trey. They even pushed that lead to as high as 17 points in the second half only to see the Growling Tigers came with as close as 5 points in the final 3 minutes. 

Fortunately, the Red Lions' defense stuck up since then as San Beda forced UST to miss more threes in the final 2 minutes and San Beda themselves were able to score in that span and it was enough for a 77-68 win for the runner-up in the NCAA Finals last year. But more importantly, the Red Lions are already secured of a spot in the PCCL Final 4, joining the Ateneo Blue Eagles, and the UP Fighting Maroons.

So, how did San Beda beat a Soulemane Chabi-Yo-equipped UST side?

The Red Lions Shot Better

San Beda basically outshot UST in every department. The Red Lions shot 41% from the field compared to UST only shooting 31%. Despite the absence of an import, the Red Lions shot 41% from the two-point area while UST failed to capitalize on the presence of the reigning UAAP MVP as the Tigers only shot 37%. But the biggest difference is the three-point shooting percentage as San Beda made 12 threes in 29 tries while UST could only make 8 of their 32 shots from deep. That's a lowly 25% and that's not the shooting percentage Aldin Ayo wanted to see from his wards. For a team whose primary weapon is their three-point shot, UST's poor shooting from deep killed them in this game. 

The Defense on Chabi-Yo

As mentioned, San Beda was playing without an import so containing the UAAP MVP in Soulemane Chabi-Yo was a headache that Boyet Fernandez needs to solve. Fortunately, San Beda's big men helped each other out and forced UST's prized big to taking uncomfortable shots. And the numbers aren't lying either as Chabi-Yo only finished with 6 points on 3 for 7 field goal shooting in 32 minutes. Although Chabi-Yo was able to get 9 rebounds under his name, it seems that the Red Lions were able to put a blanket around the big man which prevented the latter from getting into his usual rhythm. Again, San Beda's defense worked.

Balanced Offense from San Beda

While CJ Cansino exploded for 21 points for UST, he along with Brent Paraiso were the lone bright spots for the Growling Tigers. Paraiso scored 12 points 5 for 9 field goal shooting. Mark Nonoy only had 9 points on 1 for 7 shooting. Sherwin Concepcion scored 10 points on 3 for 12 field goal shooting including a woeful 2 for 10 shooting from downtown.  

On the other hand, San Beda was led by James Kwekuteye's 14 points, 7 rebounds, and 7 assists plus 4 steals. Peter Alfaro followed that up with 13 points and 6 boards on his own. Ralph Penuela added 11 points while Kenmark Carino finished with 10 points and 7 rebounds. Those are good numbers considering that the reigning NCAA MVP, Calvin Oftana was limited to 6 points on 2 for 8 field goal shooting in 25 minutes. The bench of San Beda also stepped up as they outscored their UST counterparts, 40-20. 

Photo is from the Facebook page of the PCCL