Lions roar to FinaL 4
San Beda blew a huge lead at the half but charged back down the stretch to hack out a 65-60 victory over Jose Rizal U yesterday and join unbeaten Lyceum in the Final Four of the NCAA men’s basketball tournament at the Filoil Flying V Center in San Juan.
Davon Potts hit two triples in the clutch as the Red Lions regained control at 62-57 then held the Bombers to just three points in the last three minutes to nail their 11th straight victory and 12th overall in 13 games.
That sent the defending champions in the semis with Lyceum, which notched its 13th win in a row with a scrambling victory over Perpetual Help last Thursday.
It was another scary win for the Red Lions who led by as many as 18 (28-10) early in the second quarter, only to crumble in the face of the Bombers’ stirring fightback behind Jed Mendoza.
Letran got back at first round tormentor Mapua and fashioned out an 88-79 victory to join JRU at third.
Arellano U, meanwhile, wore down Emilio Aguinaldo College, 84-79, to keep its slim semis chance with a 5-8 slate.
The Chiefs nearly squandered a 15-point bulge in the third and leaned on Lervin Flores in the clutch to frustrate the Generals, who dropped to 6-7.