San Beda go for fifth win over skidding Altas; St. Benilde to regain winning form against EAC

Red-hot San Beda tries to sustain its big-winning ways as it takes on Perpetual Help today in the 86th NCAA basketball tournament at The Arena in San Juan City.

The Lions overpowered the Letran Knights, their archrivals, 77-60, last week to roll to their fourth straight victory and seize a share of the lead with the San Sebastian Stags, the reigning titlists.

And another victory over Perpetual Help, which is still on search for a first win after dropping its first five assignments, in their 4 p.m. encounter would snare the Mendiola-based school the solo lead.

“We hope to sustain the momentum and aggressiveness without underestimating Perpetual Help,” said San Beda coach Frankie Lim.

Truly, the Lions are on a roll after blasting their way to lopsided wins in all four games by averaging a whopping winning margin of 24.5 points a game.

Credit it to an experienced squad and bench depth.

Sweet-shooting Garvo Lanete, the NCAA Press Corps’ latest ACCEL/Fil-Oil Player of the Week, exploded with 22 points while Borgie Hermida scattered 16 points.

Lanete and Hermida drew big support from a vastly improved bench that was spliced with talented rookies in former RP team mainstays Jaypee Mendoza and Kyle Pascual and Fil-Aussie Anthony Semerad.

“We’re deeper now, I guess that was the key to our earlier run,” said Lim, who is also Smart Gilas Pilipinas’ team manager.

St. Benilde and Emilio Aguinaldo, meanwhile, seek to get back into the thick of things as the two collide in the first game at 2 p.m.

The Blazers opened their season with a bang by drowning the Arellano U Chiefs, 70-64, last July 5 but lost their stride and fell to the Jose Rizal Bombers (4-1) in a 65-74 defeat Friday.

The Generals, despite maintaining an intact roster, are still looking for that seemingly elusive first triumph after losing their first three assignments including a 66-106 beating at the hands of the Stags last July 7.