Pirates try to boost Final 4 bid vs Heavy Bombers

MANILA—Newcomer Lyceum tries to tighten its hold of the No. 4 spot when it clashes with Jose Rizal U Fridayin the 87th NCAA basketball tournament at the FilOil-Flying V Arena in San Juan.

With Mapua and St. Benilde breathing down their necks, the Pirates are hard-pressed to prevail against the Bombers and nail their fifth win in 10 games in the 4 p.m. encounter.

The Blazers seek to bounce back from a tough overtime loss to the Cardinals when they meet cellar-dweller Perpetual Help at 2.

“I’m still looking for consistency from my team,” said Blazers coach Richard del Rosario, whose team actually had its best first-round start since he took over last season.

“We know the second round is going to get tough. One loss could mean a lot. We want to stay in this position and be in a good position to fight for a Final Four slot,” added Del Rosario.

The Blazers, who are tied with the Cardinals at fifth with a 4-6 record, hope to continue their mastery of the Altas, whom they defeated 88-83, in the first round.

St. Benilde, though, may have to make do without chief gunner Carlo Lastimosa, who was listed as day-to-day after spraining his ankle with two minutes remaining in the 90-94 overtime defeat to the Cardinals.

But the Blazers will welcome back center Jan Tan, who sat out Wednesday’s game because of a one-game suspension for an unsportsmanlike foul in the victory against Emilio Aguinaldo College last week.

Perpetual is coming off a 55-69 loss to defending champion San Beda last Monday and will be hoping to avoid a sixth straight defeat.

After a strong start to the season that saw them collect four wins in their first six games, the Pirates have cooled off, losing three consecutive games.

In fact, the Pirates have not won a game in more than a month with their last win coming July 20 against the Arellano Chiefs, 84-74. .

The Bombers will be looking to repeat their 74-68 conquest of the Pirates and also enhance their Final Four chances.

A win by JRU could force a three-team tie at fourth with the Bombers, Cardinals and the Pirates.