Cubs see longer NCAA reign

MANILA, Philippines – With the K-12 education program, San Beda hopes to further extend its domination in the NCAA junior basketball championship with its newly crowned champion roster to remain intact in the next two years.

“Except for one, all my players are in Grade 10 so we will have an intact lineup for the next two years,” said San Beda coach JB Sison, after piloting the Cubs to a 2-1 win over the upstart Arellano U Braves Thursday to deliver the seventh straight championship to the Taytay-based school.

That could be bad news for the Braves and the rest of the NCAA cast as Finals MVP Evan Nelle will be back not for just one more year but for two seasons to spearhead San Beda’s drive to further hike the league’s all-time title haul to 24.

But Sison doesn’t want to think too far ahead, adding it will take a lot of effort to keep their championship form and their winning appetite.

“Well, it’s a process. This year, we took it one game at a time and we will do the same in the next season and the next,” said Sison.

Nelle proved to be the biggest factor in the recent title series, stepping up in the clutch to help the Cubs thwart the Braves’ upset bid.

But Sison said it could have been anyone from his well-balanced squad that includes Germy Mahinay and Eduardo Velasquez.

“What’s good about this team is that there are really no superstars. Whoever has a good game and steps up will get the minutes they deserve,” said Sison. “You can choose any Finals MVP from them because they all, almost always, do their share.”