MANILA – Omar Larupay drilled a game-winner as Lyceum of the Philippines Pirates pulled off an 81-80 stunner over San Beda University Red Lions in the NCAA Season 98 men’s basketball on Wednesday at the Filoil EcoOil Centre in San Juan.
The Lambunao, Iloilo native unleashed the go-ahead basket over two Red Lions defenders to surge the Pirates ahead at 81-80 lead with over five seconds left in the match.
The Red Lions still had two opportunities to snatch the victory from the Pirates but Gab Cometa’s floater and Justine Sanchez’s followup basket could not find the bottom of the rim.
Larupay, a former standout of CenterPhil Montessori School in Iloilo, tallied 15 points, with nine coming in the fourth quarter, to go with seven rebounds as the Pirates climbed to 10-5 slate.
Lorenzo Navarro chipped in 10 points, on 3-of-8 three-point shooting, along with seven assists, four boards, and two steals, while JM Bravo got 10 points and three rebounds for the Pirates.
JB Bahio led the Red Lions with his double-double of 15 points and 10 rebounds, while Cometa had 14 points, there assist, and two boards. They dropped to 9-5 slate to snap their three-game winning run.
In the first game, Mapua University Cardinals rode on a frenetic start to take down Arellano University Chiefs, 67-47, for its fourth straight win. Both teams now has 6-9 win-loss slate.
The Cardinals were quick to seize control of the game as they cruised to a 16-8 first quarter before widening it further in the second half as it reached at 36-21 at halftime break.
Apart from its decent offense, the Cardinals also tightened its defense in the third quarter as they held the Chiefs to just seven points before increasing the lead further to its largest at 20 points.
Joaqui Garcia led the way with 13 points on 3-of-6 shooting from deep, Adrian Nocum chipped in 10 points and nine rebounds, while Jomer Mercado also produced 10 points, six boards, and three assists./PN
