Nothing feels better than beating the host school on opening day.
Doing it against the NCAA's most dominant basketball program makes the statement even louder.
CSB Blazers shocked host school and defending champion San Beda Red Lions, 77-68, in the NCAA Season 102 opener on Sunday, immediately putting the league on notice.
But CSB's statement win goes beyond handing SBU its first loss of the season.
CSB finds production without Allen Liwag
Reigning MVP Allen Liwag was sidelined at the start of the season as he continues to recover from a leg injury, with no definite timetable yet for his return.
Still, Liwag was there watching to support his teammates as the Blazers opened their campaign against San Beda.
His absence, however, allowed other players to step up and prove that the Blazers can still compete without their MVP.
Four Benilde players scored double digits to get past the defending champions. Jhomel Ancheta led the charge with 19 points, four rebounds, and three assists. Matthew Jucom added 18 points and six rebounds. Irele Galas added 12 points, six rebounds, and two assists, while Raffy Celis scored 11 points.
For CSB head coach Paolo Layug, the response from his players was exactly what the team needed.
"We have other guys who can step in; that's what we expect. Today it was Irele. He got us, he played great today," Layug said.
CSB's collective production highlighted the depth of a roster that entered the season with questions about how it would fare without Liwag on the floor.
San Beda's win streak on opening-day matches snapped
San Beda has long been a fixture in the NCAA's opening-day schedule, with the Red Lions frequently finding themselves on the court when a new season begins.
That consistency has also reflected their dominance. For years, San Beda rarely stumbled when opening a campaign.
The last time the Red Lions lost their opening game came against the former NCAA member PCU Dolphins in 2005, with Jayson Castro still playing for the school. San Beda eventually finished that season with a 4-10 record before entering a rebuilding period in the years that followed.
What followed was a run of dominance that turned opening-day victories into an expectation for the Red Lions.
That 21-year opening-game winning streak finally came to an end, as CSB stunned the Red Lions in the opener, giving the Blazers an early boost of confidence heading into the season.
"Of course, it's always good to win against a good team. But for us, it's still the first game - it's a long season. We know that any day, every team can win, so we're just taking it one game at a time," CSB head coach Paolo Layug said.
"Even if it wasn't against San Beda, I'd be happy to win on the opening day," he added.
It was not the first time the Blazers had come close to pulling off an opening-day upset against the Red Lions, though, as they had come close in Season 89. CSB nearly snatched a victory from San Beda, only for Art Dela Cruz to sink the game-winning shot and preserve the Lions' escape.
But this time, CSB held its ground when the game tightened and secured the result that had eluded the Blazers years earlier.
Blazers' potential after Season 101 struggles vs. Red Lions
CSB's victory over San Beda also served as an early response to a matchup that heavily favored the Red Lions last season.
The Blazers went 1-4 against San Beda in Season 101, including a sweep in the Group B eliminations that put them behind the defending champions from the outset.
The two teams met again in the best-of-three semifinals, where CSB finally found a way to beat San Beda in Game 2, forcing a do-or-die decider.
But the Blazers could not complete the comeback, falling in Game 3 as San Beda advanced and eventually captured their 24th NCAA championship.
CSB's season ended with another setback in the third-place playoff, where they lost to the Perpetual Altas to settle for fourth place.
That made the Season 102 opener more than just another game against the defending champions.
After losing four of their five meetings with San Beda the previous season, CSB needed to show that it could finally compete with the team that had repeatedly stood in its way.
For a team that fell short of the Final Four podium last year, beating San Beda in front of a huge crowd could provide the confidence CSB needs for another run at the title.
"We always tell our boys to do their best, even if there are zero fans or 10,000 watching," Layug said.
"They were really looking forward to playing this game because it's the opening day, and you're playing San Beda. It's a jam-packed gym, how much more fun can it get?"
