SAN Beda blitzed Emilio Aguinaldo College in the third period and came away with a 71-64 triumph last night to seize the solo lead in the 89th NCAA basketball tournament at Filoil Flying V Arena in San Juan.
With Art Dela Cruz, Baser Amer and Ryusei Koga on the firing end, the Lions turned a two-point halftime deficit to a 12-point lead heading into the final period on their way to a 10th victory in 12 games, moving ahead of idle Letran.
Dela Cruz finished with 16 points, while Amer chipped in 15 as the Lions pinned a seventh loss on the Generals, who fell to a tie for sixth spot with St. Benilde.
Earlier, CJ Perez regained his lethal form to power San Sebastian to a 72-63 win over Mapua.
The rookie tallied 19 points on top of 11 rebounds and four assists as the Stags held off a late rally by the Cardinals and improved to 7-5, solidifying their hold of the fourth and last Final Four spot.
Perez capped his fine performance with a triple with nine seconds remaining, boosting the Stags to a third straight win and pinning a 10th straight loss on the Cardinals.
“I thank coach Topex (Robinson) for not giving up on me even though I was struggling,” the Pampanga-born rookie said in Filipino.
“We have to remember that he’s a rookie and he’s bound to make mistakes,” Robinson said of Perez. “He’s going to win games for us and he’s going to lose games for us but I told him that he’s always going to be on the court. That’s how much I trust him.”
Jovit Dela Cruz contributed 14 points and Jamil Ortuoste chipped in 11 for the Stags, who survived the ejection of starting forward Leo De Vera at the start of the final period.
The scores:
First Game
SAN SEBASTIAN 72—Perez 19, Dela Cruz 14, Ortuoste 11, De Vera 8, Tano 7, Magno 5, Rebollos 3, Trinidad 3, Balucanag 2, Aquino 0.
MAPUA 63—Estrella 14, Brana 13, Ighalo 9, Eriobu 7, Biteng 6, Isit 6, Saitanan 6, Magtoto 2, Gabo 0, Gonzalez 0, Cantos 0.
Quarters: 20-17, 43-31, 55-46, 72-63
Second Game
SAN BEDA 71—Dela Cruz 16, Amer 15, Koga 13, Adeogun 12, Dela Rosa 6, Mendoza 4, A. Semerad 2, D. Semerad 2, Abarcar 1, Villaruz 0, Pascual 0, Ludovice 0.
EAC 64—Happi 17, Morada 14, Jamon 13, Paguia 9, Tayongtong 9, Arquero 2, Monteclaro 0, Hiole Manga 0, King 0, Munsayac 0, Onwubere 0.
Quarters: 22-14, 31-33, 58-46, 71-64.