MANILA, Philippines – San Beda College outplayed the University of Perpetual Help in the final quarter to annex an 84-75 victory Tuesday at the Arena in San Juan, which assured the Red Lions of a twice-to-beat advantage in the Final Four of the NCAA Season 92 tournament.
Trailing 55-58 heading into the final quarter, San Beda outscored Perpetual Help, 29-17, in an explosive fourth-period performance to rack up their 13th win of the season against four defeats.
San Beda joins Arellano University as the two teams with twice-to-beat incentives in the Final Four, and will battle for the top seed in the last play date of the elimination round on Friday, also at the Arena.
"Of course, that's the goal for every team, to get the twice-to-beat," San Beda coach Jamike Jarin said after the game. "We have that luxury. But nothing is gonna be easy. It's just gonna be harder and harder, so we have to prepare."
The Altas and the Red Lions went back-and-forth in the first five minutes of the fourth quarter, with buckets from Bright Akhuetie, Jeff Coronel, and GJ Ilagan keeping Perpetual Help in the fight even as AC Soberano began to wax hot for San Beda.
Perpetual Help last took the lead at 69-68 after Akhuetie drained two charities off a foul by Ben Adamos.
That was when Dan Sara and Davon Potts took charge for the Red Lions. With the veteran Sara setting the plays, the Filipino-American swingman put San Beda ahead for good with a jumper that made it 70-69 with 4:59 to go, then added a floater over Akhuetie to make it a three-point lead, 72-69, with 4:14 left.
San Beda then got a huge break when Robert Bolick beat the buzzer with a heave from beyond the arc. Another jumper by Potts capped a 9-1 run for the Red Lions that put them ahead, 77-70, with just under two minutes left to play.
"We were patient (in the fourth quarter)," Jarin explained. "I have to give credit to Dan Sara. That's what I was looking for him in this tournament. Unfortunately, it got derailed because of his injuries. Right now, he just held down the fort and made the right plays in the end."
The Altas cut the deficit to five points, 72-77, with 1:48 left after a quick bucket by Akhuetie, but they gave up a lay-up to Bolick on the other end, and then compounded their woes when Coronel was called for an unsportsmanlike foul on San Beda's Javee Mocon.
Mocon was unable to make his charities, but San Beda maximized their extra possession as Sara fired a bullet pass to Jomari Presbitero for the dagger three-pointer with 29.5 seconds to go that made it a double-digit lead, 82-72.
Soberano finished with 18 points, making four of his six three-pointers, while Potts had eight of his 15 points in the final quarter to spark San Beda's final run. Mocon had a double-double of 14 points and 13 rebounds, while Sara tallied six points and six assists.
Akhhuetie tallied a monster double-double of 29 points and 18 rebounds for the Altas, while Ilagan had 16 markers. But the Altas struggled with San Beda's press, committing 23 turnovers that the Red Lions converted to 18 points.
With the victory, San Beda completed a season sweep of Perpetual Help, having beaten the Altas 88-70 in the first round.
The scores:
PERPETUAL 75 – Akhuetie 29, Ylagan 16, Dagangon 11, Coronel 9, Singontiko 5, Pido 2, Eze 2, Gallardo 1, Sadiwa 0, Dizon 0
Quarter scores: 20-12, 37-35, 55-58, 84-75
(For more sports coverage, visit the ABS-CBN Sports website.)
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