San Beda beats JRU, grabs share of NCAA lead

MANILA, Philippines — Defending champion San Beda breezed past Jose Rizal University, 68-54, to grab a share of first place in the NCAA Season 89 men’s basketball tournament Monday at the Filoil Flying V Arena in San Juan.

The Red Lions, seeking their fourth straight championship, got off to a fast start and built a commanding lead early before coming through a few bumps late.

“It was not as dominant as you see it,” said San Beda coach Boyet Fernandez after his team tied Letran at 9-2.

“We took care of the ball in the first half but we turned the ball over a lot in the second half,” added Fernandez.

San Beda, which committed 15 errors in the second half alone, saw its 18-point lead cut to nine, 60-51, late in the fourth quarter after a three-point play by Marco Balagtas.

But the Lions were just too much in the end with Ola Adeogun and Baser Amer in the fold.

Adeogun scored 20 points and pulled down 10 rebounds while Amer had 15 points and four assists.

Balagtas led the Heavy Bombers, who slipped to fifth at 5-6, with 16 points, eight in the fourth quarter.