Akhuetie, Altas bid to end Final 4 exits vs Lions

Perpetual Help Altas’ Bright Akhuetie. Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net

PERPETUAL Help will be back at full-strength when it seeks an upset of top seed San Beda on Friday in the Final Four of the 92nd NCAA basketball tournament at MOA Arena.

After serving a team-imposed suspension in their last elimination-round game against the Mapua Cardinals, Bright Akhuetie is expected to return for the clash with the Red Lions, who will have a twice-to-beat advantage  in the semifinals.

The school announced that Akhuetie has patched things up with team consultant Nosa Omorogbe, whom he had a disagreement in one of the team’s practices last week.

That incident  prompted the Altas to suspend him for the clash against the Cardinals, who relegated Perpetual Help to the No. 4 spot.

“”Everything is okay now, he will play,” said Omorogbe of the 6-foot-8 Akhuetie, who enters the postseason, averaging 18.4 points (third best in the league), 12.3 rebounds (fourth) and 1.7 blocks (fifth).

The Altas are looking to end a string of Final Four exits at the hands of the Red Lions, who eliminated them for three straight seasons from 2012 to 2014.

“There’s always a first time,” said Omorogbe, who was part of the Altas squad that lost to the Lions in 2012 and 2013. “We just need to play as a team and believe on one another.”