NCAA: JRU stays hot, ends Lyceum streak with late rally

JRU Heavy Bombers’ Marwin Dionisio in the NCAA Season 98 men’s basketball tournament.
Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net

MANILA, Philippines—Jose Rizal University upped its winning streak to five after stunning Lyceum, 63-57, in the NCAA Season 98 men’s basketball tournament at San Juan Arena on Friday.

The Heavy Bombers snapped the Pirates’ five-game winning streak, thanks in big part to their end-game breakaway rally.

“We weren’t having problems with what we were doing. This game was just a game of streaks, it’s up and down. The game started when we took the lead but we were trailing all throughout. This is a big learning for us,” JRU head coach Louie Gonzalez said.

All in all, the Bombers used a 16-1 run from to climb up from a 47-56 deficit in the final period to take over the game for good.

With JRU holding a two-point advantage in the dying seconds of the game, 59-57, John Amores drove the lane for an all-important bucket to put JRU up, 61-57, with 26.8 seconds remaining. He finished with eight points.

After trailing by six to start the fourth quarter, 43-49, the Heavy Bombers used a pivotal 13-7 run to tie the game at 56-all, on Joshua Guiab’s bucket in the paint. 

It was a tale of two halves, as Lyceum, which dropped to a 5-2 record similar to JRU, held a nine-point lead at the end of the second quarter, 38-29.

Marwin Dionisio was the high-point man for the Heavy Bombers as he finished with 15 points. William Sy chipped in 10 points in the win.

JM Bravo was the only player in Lyceum’s lineup to hit double-digits with 11 points. Mac Guadaña, who was hailed as last week’s NCAA Player of the Week, only scored seven.

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The Scores:

JRU 63—Dionisio 15, Sy 10, Amores 8, Guiab 7, Delos Santos 6, Gonzales 6, Dela Rosa 5, Medina 4, Miranda 2, Celis 0, Arenal 0, Joson 0, Villarin 0.
LPU 57—Bravo 11, Barba 9, Guadana 7, Penafiel 7, Umali 5, Valdez 4, Cunanan 4, Larupay 3, Villegas 3, Omandac 3, Navarro 1, Montano 0.

Quarterscores: 18-16, 29-38, 43-49, 63-57.