Perpetual Help survives Emilio Aguinaldo in thriller

Perpetual Help made the plays that mattered most in the end as it turned back Emilio Aguinaldo College, 76-74, on Thursday to zoom to solo third place in the NCAA Season 94 men’s basketball tournament at EAC Gym in Manila.

Edgar Charcos, a rookie transferee from University of the East, sizzled with 22 points while Prince Eze came a shot block away from churning out a triple-double with 15 points and 22 rebounds to help power the Altas to their second straight win for 2-1 overall.

Only Lyceum, which has a 4-0 record, and 2-0 San Beda are ahead of Perpetual Help in the standings.

Kim Aurin, a transferee from Jose Rizal University, also came close to a triple-double with 12 points, nine rebounds and eight assists.

Perpetual coach Frankie Lim said he was impressed with how the 6-foot-9 Eze responded to the challenge of stopping Cameroonian Hamadou Laminou, who was limited to 12 points after entering the game with a league-best average of 24 points.

“I told him (Eze) it’s his job to limit Hamadou and he responded,” said Lim.

EAC had a chance to send the game into overtime, but Jerome Garcia nailed a jumper that sealed the Perpetual win.

The Generals, who were led by rookie Maui Cruz’s 18 points, fell to their third straight defeat.

In junior play earlier, EAC turned back Perpetual Help, 83-78, to nail its first win after two defeats.

Cjay Boado led the Brigadiers with 23 points while Ely Ilustrisimo and Bhen Lozano chipped in 14 and 11, respectively.

Mark Gallano fired 20 points to pace the Junior Altas, who absorbed their first defeat after opening the season with two straight wins.

Senior scores:

PERPETUAL HELP 76—Charcos 22, Eze 15, Aurin 12, Peralta 11, Coronel 6, Razon 5, Cuevas 2, Pedrosa 2, Mangalino 1, Tamayo 0.

EAC 74—Cruz 18, Garcia 17, Laminou 12, Natividad 10, Bautista 5, Diego 4, Mendoza 3, Gonzales 2, Robin 2, Tampoc 1, Magullano 0, Neri 0, Bugarin 0, Fuentes 0.

Quarters: 20-17, 38-34, 56-57, 76-74