MANILA, Philippines–It was the air assault that upended the commanders.
Putting the nail in the coffin in the final moments, the Jose Rizal University Heavy Bombers overthrew the Emilio Aguinaldo College Generals, 81-79, at the NCAA men’s basketball tournament at the Arena in San Juan Friday afternoon.
Swingman John Grospe split a pair of free throws with 10 seconds remaining and Philip Paniamogan grabbed the board off a botched Generals layup to seal a 5-3 record for the Heavy Bombers.
JRU head coach Vergel Meneses said his players had developed the composure to hold off the Generals in the end game.
“The composure is there, it’s slowly starting to develop among them,” Meneses said whose team preserves its third-seed with a 5-3 record. “They can match-up in a grit and grind game.”
General John Tayongtong made the skirmish a one-point game with 15 seconds remaining after he drove to an open lane, 80-79.
JRU built a 13-point lead late in the third, 66-53, courtesy of Nonoy Teodoro’s long bombs.
Even with the victory, Meneses said that his team should not be complacent as any team could come out on top.
“I always tell them make it close, never be complacent,” Meneses said. “If you make it close, we have a bigger chance of winning. We can’t relax, even with a big lead.”
Paniamogan paced the Heavy Bombers with 18 points with swingman Jaycee Asuncion adding 15.
While Teodoro had 14 and guard Dave Sanchez contributed 11 for JRU.
Tayongtong paced the Generals with 21 points, 10 of which came in the fourth, with Jack Arquero and Noibe Happi adding 12 apiece for EAc which fell to a 2-6 record and a 9th seed in the 10-team league.