By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
The Mapua Cardinals are back at the pedestal of the NCAA after capturing the Season 100 championship title on December 7, 2024, at the SMART Araneta Coliseum.
Eager to end their 33-year golden trophy drought in the oldest collegiate league in the country, the Cardinals didn’t give any room to breathe to the College of St. Benilde Blazers and completed the series sweep after a convincing Game 2 win, 94-82.
Just like their inspired Game 1 outing when they dominated the Blazers in all facets of the game, the Cardinals stuck to their game plan and lived by their mantra: “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”
That then rose in the atmosphere of the Araneta Coliseum as Mapua continued their waxing hot performance from the three-point line and used their speed to neutralize Benilde’s size advantage at the post.
After Clint Escamis’ explosion in Game 1, it was Marc Cuenco who sparked Mapua’s early fiery run in the first half highlighted by several fast break plays and stop-and-pop conversions from downtown.
With Escamis being tightly guarded by the Blazers’ backcourt, the duo of Cuenco and Chris Hubilla shared the load and stepped up for Mapua.
Despite being undersized against the Benilde giants, Hubilla showed heart and outperformed them with his box-out clinic and leaping ability.
Every time Benilde threatened to close the gap, Hubilla’s momentum-breaking putback layups deflated the Blazers’ frontcourt.
In back-to-back situations in the fourth quarter, Hubilla out-muscled the bigger Benilde centers and displayed his positioning prowess once his feet were set in the dunker’s spot.
Escamis then woke up in the second half and drilled some ice-cold buckets that silenced the Benilde crowd. Although he didn’t produce another 30-point piece for Mapua, the former MVP had plenty of support this time and showed out in the assists and rebounding department.
“Finally, binigay na sa amin after 33 years. Nagpapasalamat ako sa sumuporta sa amin. Siyempre, tuwang-tuwa ako at finally nakuha na namin after three tries,” said Mapua head coach Randy Alcantara after the sweet sweep.
Cuenco led all Mapua scorers in Game 2 after erupting for 19 points and four assists while Escamis added 18 markers.
Hubilla, who impressed in his first season with the Cardinals, capped off his championship season with 15 points and eight rebounds.
On the other hand, Justine Sanchez of the Blazers led all scorers with 24 markers but his massive offensive output wasn’t enough to steer Benilde to a do-or-die Game 3 extension.
