The basketball tournaments of National Collegiate Athletic Association (Philippines) 78th season hosted by San Beda College began on June 29, 2002 at the Araneta Coliseum with Philippine Sports Commission chairman Eric Buhain as the special guest, followed by the opening ceremonies, a ceremonial toss together with NCAA Policy Board president Fr. Anscar Chupungco, OSB, and a quadruple-header.[1] Games then are subsequently held at Rizal Memorial Coliseum. This was the first season of ABS-CBN's live coverage of the seniors’ games aired at Studio 23.[2]
| Host school | San Beda College | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||||||||
| Duration | September 18–20, 2002 | ||||||||||||
| Arena(s) | Rizal Memorial Coliseum | ||||||||||||
| Finals MVP | Leo Najorda | ||||||||||||
| Winning coach | Turo Valenzona (6th title) | ||||||||||||
| Semifinalists |  PCU Dolphins JRU Heavy Bombers | ||||||||||||
| TV network(s) | ABS-CBN Sports Studio 23 | ||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||
| Duration | September 18–20, 2002 | ||||||||||||
| Arena(s) | Rizal Memorial Coliseum | ||||||||||||
| Finals MVP | JVee Casio | ||||||||||||
| Winning coach | Ato Badolato (13th title) | ||||||||||||
| Semifinalists |  Mapúa Red Robins San Sebastian Staglets | ||||||||||||
| TV network(s) | ABS-CBN Sports Studio 23 | ||||||||||||
Seniors' tournament edit
Teams edit
| Team | College | Coach |
|---|---|---|
| Letran Knights | Colegio de San Juan de Letran (CSJL) | Louie Alas |
| Benilde Blazers | De La Salle–College of Saint Benilde (CSB) | Dong Vergeire |
| JRU Heavy Bombers | José Rizal University (JRU) | Boy de Vera |
| Mapúa Cardinals | Mapúa Institute of Technology (MIT) | Horacio Lim |
| PCU Dolphins | Philippine Christian University (PCU) | Jimmy Mariano |
| San Beda Red Lions | San Beda College (SBC) | Jonathan Reyes |
| San Sebastian Stags | San Sebastian College – Recoletos (SSC-R) | Turo Valenzona |
| Perpetual Altas | University of Perpetual Help DALTA System (UPHDS) | Bai Cristobal |
Elimination round edit
Team standing edit
| Pos | Team | W | L | PCT | GB | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Sebastian Stags
|
11 | 3 | .786 | — | Twice-to-beat in the semifinals |
| 2 |  Benilde Blazers
|
10 | 4 | .714 | 1 | |
| 3 | PCU Dolphins
|
9 | 5 | .643[a] | 2 | Twice-to-win in the semifinals |
| 4 | JRU Heavy Bombers
|
9 | 5 | .643[a] | 2 | |
| 5 | Mapúa Cardinals
|
7 | 7 | .500[b] | 4 | |
| 6 |  Letran Knights
|
7 | 7 | .500[b] | 4 | |
| 7 |  San Beda Red Lions (H)
|
2 | 12 | .143 | 9 | |
| 8 |  Perpetual Altas
|
1 | 13 | .071 | 10 |
Rules for classification: 1) winning percentage; 2) if tied for #2 and #4, one-game playoff; 3) head-to-head record; 4) head-to-head point differential; 5) overall point differential
(H) Hosts
Notes:
Match-up results edit
Scores edit
Results on top and to the right of the dashes are for first-round games; those to the bottom and to the left of it are second-round games.
Bracket edit
| Semifinals (Nos. 1 & 2 have twice-to-beat advantage) | Finals (Best-of-three series) | |||||||||
| 1 | San Sebastian | 102* | ||||||||
| 4 | JRU | 96 | ||||||||
| 1 | San Sebastian | 79 | 86 | |||||||
| 2 | Benilde | 78 | 69 | |||||||
| 2 | Benilde | 93 | 106 | |||||||
| 3 | PCU | 95* | 87 | |||||||
Number of asterisks (*) denotes the number of overtime periods.
Semifinals edit
San Sebastian and Benilde have the twice-to-beat advantage. They only have to win once, while their opponents, twice, to progress.
(1) San Sebastian vs. (4) JRU edit
September 11
2:00 p.m. |
| San Sebastian Stags |
102–96 (OT) | JRU Heavy Bombers |
| Scoring by quarter: 23-14, 24-27, 22-24, 16-20, Overtime: 17-11 | ||
| Pts: Nurjamjam Alfad 23 Rebs: Alfad, Moore 10 each Asts: Najorda, Falcasantos 5 each |
Pts: Joel Finuliar 23 Rebs: Joel Finuliar 10 Asts: Wynsjohn Te 8 | |
| San Sebastian wins series in one game | ||
It was a nip-and-tuck affair all game until JRU's Edward Attunga converted two free throws to give his team its first lead of the game, 85–84, with 59 seconds left. San Sebastian's Redentor Vicente was fouled on a drive, but split his charities to tie the game at 85-all with 22 seconds remaining in the final period. JRU's Wynsjohn Te had a chance to win the game but missed a difficult lay-up, sending the game into overtime. Defending champs San Sebastian's trifecta of Redentor Vicente, Clark Moore, and Michael Gonzales needed an extra five minutes to beat the Heavy Bombers and advance to the Finals.[5]
(2) Benilde vs. (3) PCU edit
September 11
4:00 p.m. |
| Benilde Blazers |
93–95 (OT) | PCU Dolphins |
| Scoring by quarter: 15-26, 18-20, 19-19, 27-14, Overtime: 14-16 | ||
| Pts: Jay Sagad 26 Rebs: Salvacion, Magpayo 8 each |
Pts: Jojo Roque 20 Rebs: Leo Gaspi 7 | |
September 13
4:00 p.m. |
| Benilde Blazers |
106–87 | PCU Dolphins |
| Scoring by quarter: 34-22, 23-24, 23 -18, 26-23 | ||
| Pts: Sunday Salvacion 34 | Pts: Bernzon Franco 28 | |
| CSB wins series in two games | ||
It was PCU's game throughout the first half of Game 1 when they saw their main big man Bernzon Franco sidelined with an ankle sprain. But PCU maintained its composure to control the distance until CSB's Jay Sagad, Sunday Salvacion, and Elvis Tolentino force a comeback to send the game into overtime. Franco returned to the game, but PCU's treys decided the final outcome and forces the Blazers to a knockout game.[6]
PCU tried its best to close the gap in Game 2, but the Blazers maintained its double-digit distance all throughout the game thanks to their stars, Jay Sagad and Sunday Salvacion. Salvacion finished with 34 points, including four triples and a dunk with four minutes remaining, sending the CSB gallery into a frenzy.[7]
Finals edit
This is a rematch of the 2000 Finals, which the Blazers won after sweeping the Stags en route to their first championship.
September 18
4:00 p.m. |
| San Sebastian Stags |
79–78 | Benilde Blazers |
| Scoring by quarter: 14-24, 27-16, 19 -18, 19-20 | ||
| Pts: Leomar Najorda 23 Rebs: Leomar Najorda 13 Asts: Christian Coronel 6 |
Pts: Sunday Salvacion 28 Rebs: Sunday Salvacion 14 Asts: Magpayo, Castro 5 | |
September 20
4:00 p.m. |
| San Sebastian Stags |
86–69 | Benilde Blazers |
| Scoring by quarter: 22-17, 21-15, 18-25, 25-12 | ||
| Pts: Pep Moore 21 Rebs: Leo Najorda 11 Asts: Michael Gonzales 10 |
Pts: Sunday Salvacion 21 Rebs: Al Magpayo 10 Asts: Jan Coching 4 | |
| San Sebastian wins series, 2–0 | ||
- Finals Most Valuable Player: Leomar Najorda (San Sebastian Stags)
The Stags were down by as many as 11 points in the first half of Game 1, thanks to the hot-shooting of Sunday Salvacion and the inside presence of Al Magpayo and Ronald Capati. But Stags veteran Christian Coronel took over and made his two free throws in the last two seconds after he was hacked by CSB's Elvis Tolentino to lead his team closer to the championship.[8][9]
The Stags did not let CSB to take over as they pummeled the Blazers right from the start of Game 2, even held them scoreless for almost eight minutes into the final period, thus claiming their second consecutive championship and eleventh title overall. Leomar Najorda was named Finals MVP.[10][11]
Awards edit
| NCAA Season 78 men's basketball champions |
|---|
 San Sebastian Stags 11th title, second consecutive title |
- Most Valuable Player: Sunday Salvacion (Benilde Blazers)
- Rookie of the Year: Jerome Paterno (San Beda Red Lions)
- Mythical Five:
- Leomar Najorda (San Sebastian Stags)
- Sunday Salvacion (Benilde Blazers)
- Arjun Cordero (San Beda Red Lions)
- Marco Polo Fajardo (JRU Heavy Bombers)
- Bernzon Franco (PCU Dolphins)
- Defensive Player of the Year: Joel Finuliar (JRU Heavy Bombers)
- Most Improved Player: Leomar Najorda (San Sebastian Stags)
- Coach of the Year: Turo Valenzona (San Sebastian Stags)
Juniors' tournament edit
Elimination round edit
San Beda won all 14 elimination round games, clinching a bye up to the Finals, with the twice-to-beat advantage. Letran finished second, Mapua third, and San Sebastian fourth.
Bracket edit
| Stepladder round 1 (Single-elimination) | Stepladder round 2 (Single-elimination) | Finals (#1 has twice-to-beat advantage) | ||||||||||||
| 1 | San Beda | 94 | 95 | |||||||||||
| 2 | Letran | 90 | 2 | Letran | 97 | 81 | ||||||||
| 3 | Mapúa | 87 | 3 | Mapúa | 78 | |||||||||
| 4 | San Sebastian | 65 | ||||||||||||
Stepladder semifinals edit
(3) Mapúa vs. (4) San Sebastian edit
(2) Letran vs. (3) Mapúa edit
Finals edit
Since San Beda swept the elimination round, they have a twice-to-beat advantage over Letran. This is a de facto best of three series with San Beda automatically leading 1-0. Therefore, San Beda has to win once, while Letran needed twice, to win the championship.
September 18
2:00pm |
| San Beda Red Cubs |
94–97 | Letran Squires |
| Pts: JVee Casio 33 Rebs: Ford Arao 21 |
Pts: Bituin, Melegrito 20 each Rebs: OJ Cua 15 |
- Finals Most Valuable Player: JVee Casio (San Beda Red Cubs)
San Beda was in command for most of Game 1, but Letran refused to lose and then took the lead, 90–88. San Beda then tied the game 93–all, thanks to Ford Arao's two free throws, 47 seconds remaining in the final period. In the next play, OJ Cua gave the lead again to the Squires, 95–93. Both teams split their charities in the final seconds, when Squire Marlon Bituin grabbed the miss from the other team, giving the Red Cubs their first loss of the season and sealing the victory for the Squires.[12]
The Red Cubs claimed their 11th NCAA juniors championship in the deciding Game 2, thanks to JVee Casio and Arvin Braganza's outside shooting and Jay Agbayani's inside presence.[13]
Awards edit
| NCAA Season 78 juniors' basketball champions |
|---|
 San Beda Red Cubs 13th title |
- Most Valuable Player: Oliver John Cua (Letran Squires)
- Rookie of the Year: PJ Walsham (Letran Squires)
- Mythical Five:
- Oliver John Cua (Letran Squires)
- JVee Casio (San Beda Red Cubs)
- Ford Arao (San Beda Red Cubs)
- Jay Agbayani (San Beda Red Cubs)
- Yuri Escueta (San Beda Red Cubs)
- Defensive Player of the Year: Elmer Espiritu (JRU Light Bombers)
- Most Improved Player: Oliver John Cua (Letran Squires)
- Coach of the Year: Ato Badolato (San Beda Red Cubs)
See also edit
References edit
- ^ Villar, Joey (June 29, 2002). "Stags launch NC title defense". Philstar.com. Retrieved April 6, 2021.
- ^ Villar, Joey (June 25, 2002). "NCAA bares tie-up with ABS-CBN". Philstar.com. Retrieved April 6, 2021.
- ^ Villar, Joey (August 13, 2002). "Crippled Dolphins win; Cards walk out". Philstar.com. Retrieved April 6, 2021.
- ^ Villar, Joey (August 8, 2002). "Brawl turns in Lions' favor". Philstar.com. Retrieved April 6, 2021.
- ^ Franco, Marco (September 11, 2002). "San Sebastian advances to the finals". ABS-CBN Pinoy Central. Archived from the original on November 8, 2002. Retrieved April 6, 2021.
- ^ Franco, Marco (September 11, 2002). "PCU forces rubber match". ABS-CBN Pinoy Central. Archived from the original on December 21, 2002. Retrieved April 6, 2021.
- ^ Navarro, June (September 14, 2002). "Blazers blaze trail to 'NC' glory". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved April 6, 2021.
- ^ Franco, Marco (September 18, 2002). "San Sebastian takes game one, 79-78". ABS-CBN Pinoy Central. Archived from the original on December 10, 2002. Retrieved April 6, 2021.
- ^ Reyes, Marc Anthony (September 19, 2002). "Coronel carries Stags to victory". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved April 6, 2021.
- ^ Franco, Marco (September 20, 2002). "San Sebastian reigns supreme". ABS-CBN Pinoy Central. Archived from the original on December 10, 2002. Retrieved April 6, 2021.
- ^ Reyes, Marc Anthony (September 21, 2002). "Stampeding Stags snare it anew". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved April 6, 2021.
- ^ Franco, Marco (September 18, 2002). "Letran Squires force winner-take-all". ABS-CBN Pinoy Central. Archived from the original on December 21, 2002. Retrieved April 21, 2021.
- ^ Franco, Marco (September 20, 2002). "San Beda Red Cubs win juniors crown". ABS-CBN Pinoy Central. Archived from the original on December 10, 2002. Retrieved April 21, 2021.