By ADRIAN STEWART CO
Jonathan Medina scored a go-ahead putback as the Jose Rizal University (JRU) Heavy Bombers escaped with an 88-87 double overtime win over the Lyceum of the Philippines Pirates in the NCAA Season 99 men’s basketball tournament at the San Juan Arena on Tuesday night, October 17.
Down 86-87 after a split free throw by the Pirates’ Alvin Penafiel, Medina was in the right place at the right time as he converted a follow-up basket to give the Heavy Bombers the lead for good.
Medina finished the contest with six points to go with three rebounds, one assist and one block as the Heavy Bombers returned to their winning ways to move up to 5-3 in the standings.
Joshua Guiab tallied 18 points and eight rebounds to lead the Heavy Bombers. Marwin Dionisio added 14 markers and nine boards, while Agem Miranda contributed 14 markers in the win.
Enoch Valdez had a double-double of 24 points and 14 rebounds, while John Bravo added 20 points and 10 rebounds as the Pirates suffered their third consecutive loss to drop to a 6-3 record.
Meanwhile, the San Beda University Red Lions pulled off a come-from-behind 62-60 triumph over the University of Perpetual Help Altas as they remained in third place in the standings with a 5-2 slate.
Rookie Jomel Puno had his best game for the Red Lions, with double-double 12 points and 17 rebounds, aside from his five straight points in the latter part of the game that gave San Beda the lead for good.
Peter Alfaro added nine points, as rookie Nygel Gonzales and sophomore Oliver Tagle chipped in eight apiece, while Jacob Cortez struggled with just six markers for the Red Lions.
“It’s just the way we started the game — we started out flat. We let them dictate the tempo and the physicality,” Red Lions head coach Yuri Escueta said.
“I liked how we picked up defensively in the second half. They really helped each other make stops,” he added.
Marcus Nitura finished with 15 points, 10 rebounds and four assists. Christian Pagaran also came close to a double-double, finishing with 14 points and nine rebounds, while Jun Roque contributed 10 markers as the Altas dropped to 3-5.
JRU 88 — Guiab 18, Miranda 14, Dionisio 14, Sarmiento 9, Argente 8, Medina 6, Delos Santos 5, Ramos 5, De Leon 4, Pabico 2, Sy 2, Arenal 1, Mosqueda 0, Barrera 0.
LYCEUM 87 — Valdez 24, Bravo 20, Umali 9, Omandac 9, Villegas 8, Penafiel 8, Barba 7, Montano 1, Guadana 1, Cunanan 0, Aviles 0.
Quarterscores: 17-12, 29-34, 45-52, 71-71, 82-82, 88-87./ASC, WDJ