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Perpetual banked on its defense in the second quarter to propel itself to a 65-48 victory over Mila’s Lechon Tuesday in the 2018 PBA D-League Aspirants’ Cup at Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig.
The Altas gave little breathing room to the Mighty Roasters in that second frame, turning a tight 27-22 lead to a 42-28 halftime affair en route to their first win in the conference and under new coach Frankie Lim.
“We just tried to be decent on our defense,” said Lim as Perpetual limited Mila’s Lechon to just 28-percent shooting from the field. “We’re still working on it. It will take time before we become a good defensive team, but all I ask is for our defense to be decent.”
Nigerian center Prince Eze topped the Altas with 13 points, 14 rebounds, and four blocks, while Kim Aurin took advantage of the opportunity and fired 12 markers and two boards off the bench.
John Rey Villanueva also got nine points as he accounted for a pair in Perpetual’s 8-of-19 sniping from threes.
Lim liked how his team has been improving over the games, saying, “Little by little, they’re settling down. I just want them to execute. I told them that I don’t care who scores. It’s important that we score.”
Ken Acibar topped the Mighty Roasters with 14 points and three rebounds, while Axel Iñigo got 13 markers, five assists, two boards, and two steals.
The Scores:
PERPETUAL 65 — Eze 13, Aurin 12, Villanueva 9, Charcos 8, Jimenez 7, Peralta 7, Coronel 4, Tamayo 3, Mangalino 2, Antonio 0, Tiburcio 0.
MILA’S LECHON 48 — Acibar 14, Iñigo 13, Derige 8, Parala 8, Delfinado 3, Montuano 2, Bellosillo 0, Crisostomo 0, Deles 0, Herradura 0, Luz 0, Sarangay 0.
Quarters: 27-20, 42-28, 51-36, 65-48.