JOSE Rizal seeks the solo lead against Emilio Aguinaldo College in a battle of unbeaten teams in the 88th NCAA basketball tournament today at the Filoil Flying V Arena.
A victory over the Generals in the 4 p.m. tussle will shove the Bombers—winners of their first two games of the season—ahead of idle San Beda.
But the Generals proved they were no pushovers as they started their season on a promising note by toppling the Arellano Chiefs, 75-72, last week.
St. Benilde tries to bounce back from a narrow loss against Mapua at 6 p.m.
The Blazers are looking to regroup after the 93-95 defeat to the San Sebastian Stags last Saturday in a game where they blew several opportunities to snatch the win late in the game.
With coach Vergel Meneses exhorting them, the Bombers have been unforgiving on defense, holding opponents to a league-best 64.5 points. But JRU is also struggling in taking care of the ball with a combined 50 turnovers in its first two games.
Picking up from where he left off last season, senior guard Nate Matute has become the cornerstone of the Bombers’ attack.
The Generals are pinning their hopes on the frontcourt duo of Russel Yaya and Happy Noube, who delivered a double-double of 16 points and 14 rebounds against the Chiefs.
EAC coach Gerry Esplana is also hoping for another solid outing from playmaker Franz Chiong, who dished out a career-best 10 assists in their first victory.