NCAA: Lastimosa lifts Blazers past Pirates

The College of Saint Benilde Blazers limited the Lyceum of the Philippines University Pirates to just eight points in the final period to start their NCAA Season 88 seniors basketball tournament campaign with a 70-61 win, Monday at the FilOil Flying V Arena in San Juan Veteran guard Carlo Lastimosa finished with 14 points, six rebounds and six assists as the Blazers needed a big run early in the final quarter to hammer out the come-from-behind win. Trailing 57-51, Lastimosa scored eight straight points to spearhead CSB’s 14-0 run that made it 65-57, Benilde up, with 4:15 remaining. “Yung players namin masyadong gigil.  Medyo I expected them to come that way, first game of the season and they were too anxious and too eager,” said Blazers mentor Richard Del Rosario. The Pirates, which produced an impressive Season 87 record, 7-11 and tied for fifth place in their maiden campaign last year in the league, were in the game until they folded in the last eight minutes of play. “We failed defensively for the first three quarters.  Gusto kasi nilang talunin ang Lyceum sa first quarter pa lang kaya I told them we have four quarters to try to win this game,” Del Rosario said. Now on his fourth year, Del Rosario seeks to steer the Blazers towards snapping a streak of 10 straight seasons without making it into the Final Four.  To get there, they'll need more of the same kind of effort from Lastimosa, who won Rookie of the Year honors two seasons ago, back in 2010. “He took charge when the team needed him,” Del Rosario pointed out, referring to his team's start player. Swingman Paolo Taha added 11 markers, while Lastimosa's backcourt partner Luis Sinco chipped in 10. The Pirates were led by shooting guard Chris Cayabyab, who managed 13 points, plus eight rebounds and three assists, while his point guard Shane Ko had 11 points for Lyceum. Benilde faces an even stiffer challenge in their next game on Saturday, as they collide against last season's runners-up, the San Sebastian Stags, while Lyceum faces a quick turnaround, when they clash against debuting University of Perpetual Help Altas on Thursday. - AMD, GMA News   The scores: CSB 70 – Lastimosa 14, Taha 11, Sinco 10, Romero 9, Tan 8, Grey 8, Tolentino 6, Ongteco 4, Bartolo 0, Maconocido 0, Garcia 0, Deles 0, Altamirano 0. LPU 61 – Cayabyab  13, Ko 11, Guevarra 8, Azores 8, Laude 6, Zamora 5, Ambohot 4, Francisco 4, Mendoza 2, Martinez 0, Garcia 0, Mallari 0. Quarter scoring: 12-12; 33-31; 49-53; 70-61 Inboundpass has been covering collegiate basketball for six years. For more NCAA stories and information, check out inboundpass.com and follow Inboundpass on Twitter at @inboundpass