Games tomorrow
(The Arena, San Juan city)
12 noon — Lyceum vs Arellano (Jrs.)
2 p.m. — SSC vs JRU (Jrs.)
4 p.m. — Lyceum vs Arellano (Srs.)
6 p.m. — SSC vs JRU (Srs.)
 

 
Lyceum of the Philippines University went all out in the final quarter to beat Mapua Institute of Technology, 78-74, for its second straight win in the NCAA men’s basketball tournament at the Arena in San Juan City.
The Pirates resorted to every conceivable means on both ends of the court when nothing else was working, turning to their vicious trapping defense during the most trying times in the fourth period while relying on their free throw production — though a bit awful — to pull through in a game between neighbor schools.
The Pirates, who defeated Emilio Aguinaldo College, 83-81 last Saturday, have now notched their second win in five outings, while sending the Cardinals reeling to their second loss in four games.
“We played hard defense. It’s winning time and the players took over,” said Lyceum coach Bonnie Tan.
The Pirates sank nine of their 12 attempts from the free throw line, and got some breaks down the stretch by playing no-nonsense defense which often pushed the Cardinals to committing errors.
Chris Cayabyab, fouled two times in the act of shooting from beyond the arc, sank only four of six free throw shots as the Pirates tied the count at 71-all with 2:21 minutes left.
The Cardinals bungled their next offensive play, paving the way for a quick Floricel Guevarra jumper as Lyceum shattered the 71-all count and wrested the lead for good at 73-71.
The Cardinals themselves were in deep trouble finding their rhythm from the free throw line, with Andrew Estrella splitting the two crucial free throws, before Jhygruz Laude gave Lyceum a 75-72 lead, with only over a minute left in the game.
Mapua kept itself within striking distance through Michael Parala’s two free throws off John Azores, 74-75, with one minute left. The Cardinals even gained a big crack at wresting the upperhand when Lyceum muffed its next play. Unfortunately for Mapua, Josan Nimes’ attempt at the basket was rejected by Daniel Garcia, with Cayabyab fishing a foul in the process.
Cayabyab cooly sank two free throws to give Lyceum more breathing room, 77-74, just 30 seconds left.
Shane Ko led the Pirates with 23 points, six rebounds and three assists, while Guevarra added 14 points and five rebounds.
Mapua tried to send the game into overtime but Kenneth Ighalo’s three-point attempt was swatted away by Cayabyab, who sealed the win by scoring a free throw off Estrella foul in the last 5.7 seconds.
The scores:
LPU (78) — Ko 23, Guevarra 14, Cayabyab 12, Zamora 7, Azores 6, Francisco 5, Laude 5, Ambohot 3, Edding 3, Garcia 0, Mallari 0, Martinez 0.
MIT (74) — Parala 27, Chien 11, Nimes 10, Ighalo 9, Estrella 7, Banal 4, Stevens 4, Abad 2, Cantos 0.
Quarterscores: 17-16; 34-34; 56-56; 78-74