Mike Harry Nzeusseu is a certified workhorse that College of St. Benilde found hard to match.
Hammering his beefy frame inside, Nzeusseu gave the Lyceum Pirates the needed stability for them to outlast the Blazers, 85-83, in the NCAA Season 95 men’s basketball tournament at Filoil Flying V Centre on Friday.
Nzeusseu was an imposing presence in the lane with 10 points and 14 rebounds as he picked apart St. Benilde’s frontline and opened a wide door of opportunities for speedy guards JC and Jayvee Marcelino to carry out what they do best.
The Marcelino twins combined for 28 points, 14 rebounds and five steals, most of them done in a whirlwind second half as the Pirates went on to notch their ninth victory in 12 games.
“We are not really looking at the next few games, but we just want to make sure that every opportunity that’s given to us, we’ll make the most out of it,” said Lyceum coach Topex Robinson.
Several bad decisions and miscues actually accelerated the downfall of the Blazers, who now lost five of their last six games for a 6-5 record after committing 20 turnovers.
“We struggled a bit in the first half. We just focused on making stops,” said Robinson.
Prince Carlos and Justin Gutang, who registered a triple-double output of 12 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists, kept the Blazers within winning distance late in the final frame, but those errors worked to the Pirates’ advantage.
Letran exploited its height advantage to the hilt in the other game by overpowering San Sebastian, 99-82, built on the efforts of big men Larry Muyang, Jeo Ambohot and Ato Ular.
The three practically threw their weight around as the Knights relentlessly attacked inside to bounce back from a double-overtime setback against the Mapua Cardinals.
Scoring leader Allyn Bulanadi had a couple of threes and finished with 20 points, but was shackled by the Knights at a time when the Stags needed the MVP contender most.
The Knights moved up to solo third with an 8-4 record while the Stags absorbed their fourth loss in 11 games after churning out back-to-back victories at the start of the second round.
In the opening game, Mapua weathered a hard-fighting Emilio Aguinaldo College, 79-76, to keep its Final Four hopes alive.
Trailing by two near the end, Noah Lugo and Laurenz Victoria came to the rescue as the Cardinals held off the Generals for their fifth win in 11 games.
Marwin Taywan turned from hero to heel after his potential game-winning three hit nothing but air in the closing seconds.
Prior to that air ball, Taywan made it a two-point deficit after back-to-back baskets only to lose grip in the end that kept the Generals plummeting further to a 1-11 record.