Red Lions lament poor rebounding

San Beda University rued its lack of effort in rebounding in light of its 55-58 loss to Mapua University last Sunday in Season 100 of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) men’s basketball tournament.

Red Lions head coach Yuri Escueta said their inability to box out allowed the Cardinals to dominate the boards, 51-31.

The defending champions are currently sitting in third place with an 8-5 win-loss record.

“First, we didn’t box out. Second, you can’t take for granted how strong they are as an offensive rebounding team, especially players like Chris Hubilla and Yam Concepcion,” Escueta said.

“So, it’s just our habit of properly boxing out and breaking our minds. We shouldn’t forget that.”

San Beda is currently fifth in rebounding with an average of 45 boards per game.

With five games left in San Beda’s schedule, Escueta said they can’t be complacent as the race to the Final Four gets harder.

“It’s still a long road. A lot of things can happen but we have to take care of our business,” Escueta said.

“It’s still a long road. A lot of things can happen.”

San Beda faces San Sebastian College on Friday at 2:30 p.m. at the Filoil EcoOil Centre.