Defending champion San Beda  drew big help  from its bench to rout Letran, 84-68, and claim the second ‘twice-to-beat’ slot in the Final Four yesterday in the NCAA seniors basketball tournament at the Filoil Flying V Arena in San Juan.

Brothers Anthony and David Semerad chipped in 24 points in their reserve roles for the Red Lions, who extended their mastery against the Knights to 12 games dating back to 2007.

“It’s all about winning big games,” said San Beda mentor Frankie Lim.

“When our big men went into foul trouble, other guys like Anthony (Semerad) and David (Semerad) stepped up.  They contributed a lot in this victory,” he added.

By extending their winning run to five, the Lions solidified their hold of second place with a 15-2 mark behind San Sebastian, which is on top with  16 wins against only one loss.

The Lions take on the Stags in a duel which has a big implication for the semifinals top seeding in the last day of eliminations on Wednesday.  The Lions dropped a 68-70 decision to the Stags in the first round which ended their 26-game winning run.

The Knights, who will take the No. 3 seed in the post-season, ended their elimination round stint with a 14-4 record.

In a game which had nothing at stake but pride, College of Saint Benilde ended a four-game losing skid by tripping Emilio Aguinaldo College, 82-73.

In the juniors division, Francis Munsayac dropped 16 points as defending champion San Beda Red Cubs, unbeaten in 17 matches, moved closer in clinching the outright finals berth with an 88-63 thumping of the Letran Squires.


The scores:


First Game (Jrs)

CSB (84) – Bonleon 19, Torres 15, Villaruz 13, Vito 10, Yap 9, Ramilo 7, Sta. Clara 6, Barrera 4, Laigo 1, Mercado 0.

EAC (67) – Mendoza 21, Superable 17, Onwubere 15, Cuyos 8, Cabral 2, Manreza 2, Padrones 2, Magtaas 0, Meana 0, Rait 0.

QS: 22-10; 35-32; 53-46; 84-67


Second Game (Jrs)

SBC (88) – Munsayac 16, Bonsubre 14, Abarcar 12, Tolentino 11, Nazareno 9, Patenio 8, Dela Costa 6, Abatayo 4, Tongco 4, Miranda 3, Macapayag 1, Babilonia 0, Lunas 0, Oleodo 0, Tee 0.

Letran (63) – Nambatac 25, Serafica 13, Luib 8, Villanueva 8, Alas 5, Catipay 2, Licyayo 2, Bagsit 0, Galleon 0.

QS: 29-19; 58-33; 80-45; 88-63


Third Game (Srs)

CSB (82) – Pate 18, Taha 14, Lastimosa 13, Tan 10, Altamirano 8, Deles 8, Dela Paz 5, Sinco 4, Carlos 2, McCoy 0.

EAC (73) – Jamon 20, Yaya 17, Vargas 11, Cubo 10, Torralba 6, Chiong 5, Paguia 2, Sanchez 2, Diolanto 0, King 0, Morada 0.

QS: 22-19; 43-30; 61-47; 82-73


Fourth Game (Srs)

SBC (84) – Lanete 28, Semerad A. 16, Semerad D. 8, Amer 8, Pascual J. 7, Dela Rosa 5, Sorela 4, Caram 2, Marcelo 2, Pascual K. 2, Villahermosa 2.

Letran (68) – Alas K. 14, Cortes 13, Cruz 11, Racal 9, Almazan 8, Dysam 8, Belorio 2, Espiritu 2, Alas J. 1, Gabriel 0.

QS: 17-14; 42-30; 64-48; 84-68