By Adrian Stewart Co

Emilio Aguinaldo College (EAC) notched their second straight win in the 95th NCAA men’s basketball season following an 80-76 victory over University of Perpetual Help System DALTA-Atlas (UPHSD Altas) yesterday at the San Juan Arena.
Jethro Mendoza posted career-high 22 points for EAC, including five three-point conversions; while Kriss Gurtiza contributed 13 points; and JP Maguliano added 11 markers.
“The reason why we won the last time out is [because] we stuck with our game plan,” said EAC head coach Oliver Bunyi. “We cannot win by talent and skill—we have to stay with the team concept.”
EAC started flat and fell behind by as much as 14 points in the opening quarter before Allan Martin, Gurtiza, and Maguliano trimmed their deficit to 39-35 at the half.
The game tightened in the third period with Adrian de Guzman and Renz Gonzales keeping pace for EAC and making it a one-point game, down 55-54. However, UPHSD Altas responded with a 7-0 blast in the final quarter to go up 62-54.
Midway through the period EAC managed to turn things around as Mendoza and Marwin Taywan put them up 75-69. Baskets from Taywan and JP Luciano, along with free throws by Maguliano, sealed the win./ASC, WDJ