NCAA: Arellano stuns Benilde, JRU beats EAC

MANILA, Philippines—Friday may as well have been called the “underdog day.”

Arellano began the day by stunning top-seeded College of St. Benilde, 73-71, at San Juan Arena in a battle of teams at the polar opposites of the standings.

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The Chiefs had held a 2-6 card while the Blazers sat atop the pack with a 6-1 record, but those stats were thrown out of the window at the end of the day.

READ: NCAA: San Beda escapes Letran, St. Benilde avoids meltdown

Arellano held a slim 71-69 lead with time winding down, but  before Benilde could mount a comeback effort, EJ Geronimo drove the lane and stopped at a dime to sink a mid-range jumper over the lengthy arms of Allen Liwag and put Arellano on top, 73-69, with 29.6 to go.

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CSB rookie Jhomel Ancheta quickly responded with a deuce to bring the Blazers closer, 73-71, with 25.2 ticks left in the game but that would prove to be their last-gasp effort as they couldn’t manufacture a shot to win or send the game to overtime.

READ: NCAA: Amid health scare, Axel Doromal plays his heart out for EAC

The Chiefs improved to a 3-6 record, thanks to another big-time effort from Jaedan Ongotan, who finished with 16 points and four rebounds. Geronimo also helped the cause with 14 to his name.

Allen Liwag dropped another double-double effort to the tune of 18 points and 17 rebounds but to no avail as CSB lost grasp of solo-first as it’s now tied with Mapua, which holds an identical 6-2 card.

Heavy Bombers defeat Generals

Bottom squad Jose Rizal University also defeated Emilio Aguinaldo College, 75-63. They are now in a tie for the seventh seed with identical 3-5 cards.

Joshua Guiab recorded a double-double of 19 points and 12 rebounds to hand JRU the dub while Robin Bernardo also played a huge factor with 13 to his name.

King Gurtiza scored 15 but to no avail. The same went for EAC’s Paolo Bagay, whose 12 points also went for naught.

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