Blazers torch Generals; Chiefs trounce Altas

MANILA—St. Benilde used a torrid attack in the third period to repulse Emilio Aguinaldo College, 80-68, Wednesday to finish the first round tied for fourth in the 87th NCAA basketball tournament at the FilOil Flying V Arena in San Juan.

Fired up by the ejection of big man Jan Tan, the Blazers went on a 19-3 tear in a seven-minute stretch in the third canto to pull away from the Generals and end up with a 4-5 record like the Lyceum Pirates.

It was St. Benilde’s best first-round performance since 2005 when the Blazers wound up 3-4 in their first seven games.

“This was a very big game for us and I’m happy the boys responded,” said St. Benilde coach Richard Del Rosario. “We had a good start unlike the last game.”

Later, Arellano notched back-to-back wins for the first time this season, trouncing Perpetual Help, 71-65, to reach 3-6 like EAC and Mapua.

Andrian Celada sustained his fiery form, tallying 23 points as the Chiefs followed up their 64-60 conquest of St. Benilde with another solid performance against the Altas, who fell to 1-8.

Stepping up when Tan left the game early in the third quarter, Jonathan Grey pumped in 17 points and grabbed 12 rebounds as the Blazers showed they had plenty of weapons outside of main man Carlo Lastimosa.

Lastimosa, coming into the game averaging 14.8 points, followed up his four-point showing in the 60-64 loss to Arellano with a 10-point output on 4-of-15 shooting this time.

But five more Blazers were up to the challenge, finishing with at least seven points, including Mark Romero with 12, Juan Taha with 9, Tan with eight and Tim McCoy and Anton Altamirano with seven apiece.

“It’s a good win for us with Carlo producing only 10 points because it means the other guys are confident,” Del Rosario said. “Even before the start of the season, we knew we will not just be a Carlo Lastimosa team. We can’t always look for him.”

Tan, one of only three legitimate big men for the Blazers, and Paguia were both ejected with 8:47 remaining in the third period with the EAC player retaliating with an elbow after their scuffle during a rebound battle.

The two players were both slapped with a Flagrant Foul 2.

Forced to play with four guards, the Blazers ran the fastbreak at every opportunity, extending a 42-36 lead to 61-39 on Grey’s layup with a minute remaining in the third period that all but wrapped up the victory.

“We were able to run with a small lineup,” said Del Rosario.

Claude Cubo posted a game-high 22 points and grabbed 10 rebounds that went with four blocks for the Generals. But aside from Cubo, Joshua Torralba and Jan Jamon, the Generals couldn’t squeeze enough output from their bench.

In juniors’ play, EAC dumped St. Benilde-La Salle Green Hills, 78-73, to finish the first round tied with its victims at 6-3, while Arellano inflicted more misery on Perpetual Help with an 81-67 triumph.

The senior scores:
First Game
ST. BENILDE 80—Grey 17, Romero 12, Lastimosa 10, Taha 9, Tan 8, McCoy 7, Altamirano 7, Sinco 4, Dela Paz 4, Deles 2, De Guzman 0, Nayve 0.
EAC 68—Cubo 22, Torralba 16, Jamon 16, Yaya 5, Chiong 4, Vargas 3, Morada 2, Paguia 0, Villegas 0, Sanchez 0.
Quarters: 18-11, 40-32, 61-42, 80-68.
Second Game
ARELLANO 71—Celada 23, Zulueta 17, Acidre 8, Doligon 8, Lapuz 7, Caperal 4, Palma 2, Casino 2, Okpe 0.
PERPETUAL HELP 65—Vidal 13, Alano 13, Paulino 10, Arboleda 8, Asuncion 7, Elopre 6, Sumera 4, Sison 4, Thompson 0, Parico 0.
Quarters: 13-10, 33-29, 55-47, 71-65