Red Lions, Heavy Bombers - In An All-NCAA FMC Finals

Pitted against two fearsome UAAP foes, the Adamson Soaring Falcons and the National University Bulldogs, reigning NCAA undefeated champion San Beda Red Lions and semifinalist Jose Rizal University Heavy Bombers found themselves in the middle of grind-it-out battles for the right to advance to the finals of the 7th Fr. Martin Collegiate Open Cup. When the dust settled though, the Falcons and the Bulldogs were dispatched, setting up a potential preview of what could be a key match-up in the upcoming 87th NCAA season.

Despite having played in the season opener of the PBA-DL a day before, it was the San Beda Red Lions that had more gas in their tanks, charging into the Finals, thanks to an 80-72 beating of the Adamson Falcons.

Anthony Semerad scored 16 points, 11 in the fourth, to lead all scorers. He was ably backed up by Olaide Adeogun with 15, and Jake Pascual and Sudan Daniel’s 12 each.

For the Adamson Falcons, Janus Lozada and Jerick Canada had 13 apiece. Big man Eric Camson scored 11, and Lester Alvarez added 8.

It was Adeogun who struck first, scoring 8 in the first quarter, to race off to a 24-16 lead. Foul trouble forced him to sit in the second though, allowing Falcons Jerick Canada and Alex Nuyles to wreck havoc and get their team to within 1, 38-37, after 20 minutes of play.

Desperate after not tasting the lead since an 8-10 score in the first quarter, Janus Lozada uncorked 8 points to shift things back to Adamson’s side temporarily in the third, but a free throw from “Superman” Sudan Daniel knotted things up at 55 a piece, resetting the table in the fourth quarter. There, Semerad and Pascual combined for 17 of San Beda’s 25 points, as the Falcons struggled to find their range, managing only 17.

In fact, the final score would have been more lopsided, had the Falcons not drained two triples within the span of seconds, to keep things mildly interesting in the final minute of the game.