Red Lions slip past Knights after endgame scare
SAN Beda survived a late scare as it pulled off a 74-68 win against the gritty Colegio de San Juan de Letran solidifying its hold of the second spot in Season 94 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) seniors basketball on Tuesday at the FilOil Flying V Center in San Juan City.
The Red Lions almost squandered a 22-point lead halfway the fourth quarter but was able to draw crucial free throws from Franz Abuda and Joe Presbitero to bag the hard-earned triumph.
San Beda improved to 11-1 for a stronger grip of No. 2, but head coach Boyet Fernandez was unhappy with
“It was really tough to give up 28 points in the fourth quarter. If we’ve lost this game, I would blame myself because I gave some players the chance to play but they simply don’t want to step up,” said Fernandez.
“First three quarters is San Beda. Fourth quarter, don’t know what team is that,” he added.
I19 points, including crucial shots down the stretch, on top of nine rebounds and three blocks while Robert Bolick chipped in 13 markers before fouling out late. Javee Mocon tallied 12 in the win.
Fernandez commended Tankoua, Abuda and Presbitero for their endgame heroics.
“I do thank the guys who played the last minute of the
Tankoua 19, Bolick 13, Mocon 12, Abuda 7, Doliguez 7, Oftana 4, Presbitero 4, Cuntapay 3, Nelle 3, Soberano 2, Cabanag 0, Canlas 0, Carino 0, Tongco 0. Quinto 19, Calvo 16, Muyang 11, Fajarito 10, Batiller 6, Ambohot 3, Taladua 3, Agbong 0, Balagasay 0, Celis 0, Galvelo 0, Mandreza 0, Yu 0. 16-15; 35-32; 60-42; 74-68 Coyoca 11, Estacio 11, Pelipel 11, Oliva 6, Andrada 5, Lazaro 5, Alcantara 3, Sanchez 3, Talampas 3, Calibo 2, Llarena 1. Romenez 12, Umali 10, Saure 9, Argente 8, Tabejen 8, Culanay 6, Caugiran 2, Santiago 2, Tibayan 2, Tolentino 1, Guarino 0, Lontok 0, Omega 0, Yanes 0. 10-9; 30-13; 41-27; 55-55; 61-60 (OT) Fornilos 24, David 19, Cagulangan 8, Sangco 6, Calimag 6, Cortez 6, Valenzuela 4, Lao 3, Palencia 3, Morales 1, Mosqueda 0, Natividad 0.
Baclaan 14, Timbancaya 14, Janao 13, Pinero 10, Loristo 4, Cortes 3, Suico 3, Are 2, Solatorio 2, Austria 0, Dela Cruz 0, Perez 0.
11-11; 29-30; 56-43; 76-65 fourth quarter. They took good care of our defense,” he said.
broke free via a 12-1 surge capped by Bolick’s booming three from top of the key for a 47-33 advantage midway the third frame.
The Lions’ lead ballooned to as high as 22 points, 67-45, on Calvin Oftana’s freebie at the 6:19 mark of the payoff period.
Bong Quinto refused to go silent as the veteran forward sparked a 19-0 blast that trimmed Letran’s
After Tankoua and Quinto exchanged baskets, guard JP Calvo threaded the Lions’ defense to push the Knights to within 6869, 16.8 ticks remaining.
San Beda though was still able to secure the win, as Abuda sank a free throw while Presbitero had a massive rebound and hit four foul shots—his only points in the game.
Quinto pumped in 19 points, pouring
Marian Buitre and Roselyn Rosier and the fans ready and raring to go again, the Diliman-based school could be heading to a dream championship.
Gametime is at 6:30 p.m. to be aired live on S+A Channel 23 and HD Channel 166 and via streaming on www.abs-cbn.com/livestream/pvl.
With Molde, Buitre and Rosier drawing inspiration from the crowd and outplaying the entire FEU squad in the last three sets, UP hacked out an unexpected 14-25, 22-25, 26-24, 25-18, 15-5 victory late Sunday to move closer to ending a long quest for a volley crown. UP last won a UAAP volley crown way back in 1982. “I was surprised. They were all cheering, the whole crowd. Everywhere I look around, there were (UP) fans. Where do they come from? I think from Diliman, yeah?” said UP coach Godfrey Okumu in jest.
“But it’s great. I really admire the fans. It gives me the drive, the purpose to serve the community and the people who love the game,” he added.
The Lady Maroons, who drew a combined 45 points from Molde, Buitre and Rosier and 11 and nine markers from AIe Gannaban and Genn Layug, respectively, could also be looking at facing the Lady Tams sans one of their main weapons as ace Celine Domingo remains a doubtful starter following her late exit in the series’ opener.
Domingo, a superb all-around player, was forced to
She never returned and the Lady Tams yielded the game, which they are heavily fancied to win.
blocks with her continued absence sure to further bolster the Lady Maroons’ title drive.
Still, the Lady Tams are going all out to force a sudden death with skipper Kyle Negrito guaranteeing a big FEU comeback although she would need the support of the rest of the team – among them Lycha Ebon, Heather Guino-o, Jerrili Malabanan and Jeanette Villareal – to stop and frustrate the Lady Maroons.
wards’ chances.
“I know my team. Like we did against UST (in the semis), I hope we’ll win Games 2 and 3,” said Pascua.
Meanwhile, National U also shoots for a sweep of the men’s crown as it tangles with UST at 12 noon after the 10 a.m. duel between Far Eastern U and Adamson for third.
The Bulldogs battled back from a set down and repulsed the Tigers, 21-25, 25-23, 25-18, 25-17, in Game One while the Tams turned back the Falcons, 20-25 23-25 29-27, 25-16, 15-10, to zero in on third place honors in the league organized by Sports Vision and backed by Mikasa and Asics.