MANILA, Philippines—Jose Rizal U gave new Emilio Aguinaldo College coach Gerry Esplana a rude welcome as the Bombers crushed the Generals, 76-50, Wednesday to boost their bid for a semifinal bonus in the 86th NCAA basketball tournament at the FilOil Flying V Arena in San Juan.
Power forward John Lopez scored 14 points on a perfect 6-for-6 shooting clip as the Final Four-bound Bombers proved unrelenting after a strong start to jack up their record to 11-4.
While San Beda and San Sebastian need just two victories to secure the semifinal bonus, the Bombers could strengthen their chance with an upset over the unbeaten Lions on Monday.
Letran also kept its hopes for a playoff for the last Final Four alive as the Knights hacked out a 72-69 victory over the St. Benilde Blazers in the first game.
“Our fate is not in our hands anymore,” said Letran coach Louie Alas, after the Knights notched their sixth victory in 14 games that put them two and a half games of Mapua, which still has three games remaining.
A Mapua win against San Sebastian on Monday or a Letran loss to San Beda of Sept. 24 will finalize the Final Four cast.
“Our chances can be likened to a duck beating a fighting cock,” said Alas. “We’re now looking forward to next season, working on getting better.
Kevin Alas finished with 19 points, including two free throws with six seconds left, that sewed up the victory for the Knights, who drew a 14-point, 15-rebound effort from center Jam Cortes.
JRU coach Vergel Meneses felt the Bombers needed a “statement victory” to solidify their status as a title contender.
“It’s about time we win big,” said Meneses, who admitted having mixed feelings about the victory because Esplana is a close friend. “Our motivation was to win convincingly because we almost lost to EAC in the first round.”
“We let our defense dictate the tempo of the game. We contested their shots and stopped their wingmen.”
Esplana, taking over the coaching reins from Nomar Isla only this week, watched in horror as the Generals surrendered 19 of the game’s first 23 points to the Bombers, who led by as many as 32 in the third quarter.
Thirteen of the 14 players fielded by Meneses scored a point each with Jay-R Bulangis adding 10 in just 13 minutes on the court.
In junior action, Jose Rizal nipped Emilio Aguinaldo, 81-78, to grab a share of fourth spot with Letran, which dropped a 63-70 decision to La Salle-Greenhills,
The senior scores:
First Game
LETRAN 72—Ke. Alas 19, Cortes 14, Belencion 12, Belorio 7, Kr. Alas 7, Taplah 5, Almazan 4, Dysam 2, Pantin 2, Espiritu 0, Alejandro 0
ST. BENILDE 69—Lastimosa 21, Sinco 11, McCoy 11, Manalac 9, Nayve 7, Tan 4, Abolucion 4, Argamino 2, Amin 0, Wong 0, de Guzman 0
Quarters: 19-17, 35-34, 54-48, 72-69
Second Game
JRU 76—J. Lopez 14, Bulangis 10, Kabigting 9, Njei 7, Matute 7, Etame 7, Duncil 5, Badua 4, Apinan 4, Hayes 4, Dizon 2, Almario 2, Montemayor 1, M. Lopez 0
EAC 50—Vargas 13, Cubo 10, Mendoza 8, Tuazon 7, R. Yaya 3, Chiong 3, L. Yaya 2, Lapitan 2, Diolanto 2, Jamon 0, Santos 0
Quarters: 19-4, 41-18, 60-31, 76-50
First Game
LETRAN 72—Ke. Alas 19, Cortes 14, Belencion 12, Belorio 7, Kr. Alas 7, Taplah 5, Almazan 4, Dysam 2, Pantin 2, Espiritu 0, Alejandro 0
ST. BENILDE 69—Lastimosa 21, Sinco 11, McCoy 11, Manalac 9, Nayve 7, Tan 4, Abolucion 4, Argamino 2, Amin 0, Wong 0, de Guzman 0
Quarters: 19-17, 35-34, 54-48, 72-69
Second Game
JRU 76—J. Lopez 14, Bulangis 10, Kabigting 9, Njei 7, Matute 7, Etame 7, Duncil 5, Badua 4, Apinan 4, Hayes 4, Dizon 2, Almario 2, Montemayor 1, M. Lopez 0
EAC 50—Vargas 13, Cubo 10, Mendoza 8, Tuazon 7, R. Yaya 3, Chiong 3, L. Yaya 2, Lapitan 2, Diolanto 2, Jamon 0, Santos 0
Quarters: 19-4, 41-18, 60-31, 76-50
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