Mark Sangco put a scoreless first half behind him to lead De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde's second half rampage that eventually resulted in a 72-54 triumph against last season's tormentor Colegio de San Juan de Letran on Sunday.
Sangco only attempted form the field twice in the first two quarters but found his touch in the third quarter, where he scored all 13 of his points, highlighted by three triples to give the Blazers the separation they needed after a tight affair against the Knights in the first half.
Benilde head coach Charles Tiu said Sangco's offensive outburst is a crucial piece to what he has been wanting the whole season — a deep bench, especially with the NCAA Season 99 Final Four looming.
"We need to have a deep lineup. The more guys contributing, the harder to defend us," Tiu shared.
"Mark has been up and down, so inconsistent, and I’m still upset that he got himself ejected and suspended in one game that could maybe give us a chance for a Final Four."
"Sinabi niya na babawi siya pero the job’s not done for us. We still have to earn our way to the Final Four (He said he would make up for it but the job's not done for us. We still have to earn our way to the Final Four)."
Sangco, who was only averaging 5.47 points before the game against the Knights, also played a key role in addressing the absence of Will Gozum. The reigning MVP sustained an injury a minute into the third quarter and did not return to the game, setting the stage for Sangco and other big men to step up.
It was the 6-foot-4 Sangco who delivered in a big way for Benilde, which established a double-digit lead to pull away for good from upset-seeking Letran.
The Blazers, who are third in the league in bench points, also moved up to third place in the standings.
"We’ve been teasing them that our bigs can’t shoot but Mark hit three three-pointers, those are very big shots and losing Will was a big loss for us so I’m happy that Mark and (Miggy) Corteza stepped up," Tiu added.
—JMB, GMA Integrated News
