UNIVERSITY of Perpetual Help tries to bounce back strong from a stinging loss to giant-killing San Sebastian, as it squares off with listless College of Saint Benilde (CSB) on Thursday in the National Collegiate Athletic Association Season 92 seniors men’s basketball tournament at The Arena in San Juan City.
The Altas, now at solo third spot with eight wins and three losses, hope to avoid another meltdown as they face the winless Blazers (0-11) at 2 p.m. Also featured in the twin-bill game day is the matchup of season favorites Arellano University and lowly Emilio Aguinaldo College (EAC) at 4 p.m.
Bright Akhuetie fought the Stags singlehandedly with his 21-point performance, but his gallant effort was overpowered by the trio of Alvin Capobres, Allyn Bulanadi and RK Ilagan, who all manned the scoring chores for San Sebastian to ease out Perpetual, 71-55, on August 19.
The Blazers, on the other hand, has their worst start yet since 2004 with its 11th-straight defeat. Their latest defeat came at the hands of the Chiefs, 69-78, with Carlo Young pouring 24 points while Jj Domingo had his share of 15 markers.
“We need to emphasize on team play, not just in defense but offense, as well. We can’t rely on one or two players to carry the team,” Perpetual Head Coach Jimwell Gican said. “We have to return to the basic by playing straight up defense.”
The Altas were the No.1 team in defense before their clash with San Sebastian, allowing their rivals to just 61 points a game.
Meanwhile, the league’s second-best team Arellano (9-2) battles the Generals (3-8), with the former gunning for a win that will put them in a tie with San Beda for the top spot.
The Chiefs boast a deadly lineup of Jio Jalalon, Kent Salado and Lervin Flores to match the trio of EAC’s Francis Munsayac, Igee King and Sidney Onwubere.
Jalalon, a heavy favorite for this season’s Most Valuable Player award, finished with 17 points, while American import Dioncee Holts and Salado added 12 and 11 markers, respectively, in their thrashing of Benilde last week.
“We couldn’t let this chance pass up, we will definitely be going all out for a win,” Arellano Head Coach Jerry Codinera said.
The Generals had a monster game from Onwubere, who filled up the stats sheet with his impressive 19 points, 18 rebounds, six blocks and five assists against San Beda. But he got no relief from the court as they kneeled down to the Red Lions, 82-90, last week.