Calvin Abueva and Ian Sangalang notched career-highs in points and rebounds as the Stags crushed the Emilio Aguinaldo College Generals, 99-63, Monday for their 10th straight victory in the 87th NCAA basketball tournament at the FilOil-Flying V Arena in San Juan.
Abueva came off the bench to fire a season-high 34 points, while Sangalang grabbed 25 boards that went with 18 points as the Stags followed up their strength-sapping 70-68 win over defending champion San Beda with an awesome display of firepower.
“We don’t want to fall into the trap that we are going to be complacent just because it’s EAC,” said San Sebastian coach Topex Robinson.
Earlier, San Beda needed a strong finish to pull off a scrambling 69-55 victory over Perpetual Help.
Kyle Pascual bullied his way to 15 points and 10 boards as the the Lions overcame a strong third quarter-effort from the Altas to improve to 9-1.
Lions coach Frankie Lim admitted that fatigue took a toll on his players, who came out flat in the opening minutes of the second half, allowing the Altas to slice what was a 17-point lead to three at 44-47.
“We were sloppy in the third quarter,” said Lim.
“The guys are tired so hopefully this long break will help us recover from our bruises,” added Lim, whose Lions will return to action against EAC on Sept. 2.
The Lions rediscovered their running game early in the fourth quarter, unleashing an 8-0 blitz to build a 57-44 buffer en route to dealing the Altas their ninth loss in 10 games.
The Stags trailed, 0-4, in the opening two minutes, prompting Robinson to burn a early timeout. There was no letup from there as Abueva caught fire in the middle quarters to boost the Stags to their most lopsided win of the season.
EAC fell to ninth after dropping to 3-7.
“We picked up the pace in the second quarter,” Robinson said. “I told the team that we should play this way in the second round. We have to be on the winning page all the time.”
Abueva’s output was the highest in the league since John Wilson’s 48-point explosion two seasons ago against St. Benilde, while Sangalang matched Letran forward Dino Daa’s rebound tally against Perpetual Help in 2007.
“I wanted to make the most out of my advantage,” said the 6-foot-6 Sangalang, whose rebound total included 15 offensive boards. “I was surprised I got all those rebounds. I just kept pushing myself.”
Ronald Pascual added 16 points, while Jovit dela Cruz contributed 10 for the Stags, who held an astonishing 61-25 rebounding edge. Abueva also had 14 rebounds and dished out six assists.
In juniors’ play, San Beda streaked to its 10th straight win with a 113-68 demolition of Perpetual Help, while EAC trounced San Sebastian, 77-68, to jack up its record to 7-3.
The scores:
First Game
SAN BEDA 69—K. Pascual 15, J. Pascual 13, Dela Rosa 13, Lanete 9, Marcelo 6, Koga 5, Villahermosa 2, Sorela 2, Lim 2, Amer 1, Semerad 1, Pontejos 0.
PERPETUAL 55—Asuncion 15, Alano 11, Paulino 9, Vidal 9, Elopre 7, Thompson 3, Parico 1, Tonggal 0, Sumera 0, Sison 0, Arboleda 0.
Quarters: 15-6, 33-19, 49-44, 69-55
Second Game
SAN SEBASTIAN 99—Abueva 34, Sangalang 18, Pascual 16, Dela Cruz 10, Del Rio 7, Maiquez 5, Miranda 4, Ferrer 2, Antipuest 2, Balucanag 1.
EAC 63—Cubo 15, Torralba 14, Vargas 10, Yaya 10, Morada 7, Jamon 4, Sanchez 3, Juliano 0, Villegas 0, Diolanto 0, Chiong 0.
Quarters: 19-15, 45-30, 66-44, 99-63