Lions storm to 12th straight win

GARVO Lanete waxed hot for 30 points, including 13 in the fourth quarter as San Beda College turned back Mapua, 90-78, yesterday to stretch its unblemished run to 12 wins in the 86th National Collegiate Athletic Association basketball tournament at The Arena in San Juan City.

Lanete uncorked a season-best 30-point effort, including 13 in the final canto to make up for the absence of pro-bound guard Borgie Hermida as the Lions closed in on the twice-to-beat incentive in the Final Four.

“He played a monster game,” said San Beda coach Frankie Lim of his fourth-year guard.

The Cardinals, who were led by Allan Mangahas’ 22 points, fell to their fifth setback against seven triumphs.

Meanwhile, Kris Alas stepped up in the absence of his brother Kevin as Letran overpowered Perpetual Help, 90-61, yesterday to breathe life to its flickering Final Four hopes.

The defensive-minded Alas showed another facet of his other game by firing a team-high 16 points that more than made up for the absence of the younger Alas, their leading scorer, who was out due to fever, to help the Knights nail their fifth loss against seven losses.

The win kept Letran’s hopes alive for a spot in the Final Four although it would need to sweep its remaining four games and hope and pray that Mapua gets into a big slide.

“It’s not in our hands anymore,” said Letran coach Louie Alas, whose worst stint as coach of the Muralla-based school for a decade was a 7-7 record.

Aloysius Taplah, Jam Cortes, Franz Dysam, Jaypee Belencion and Jay Espiritu chipped in 14, 13, 12, 12 and 10 points, respectively, to help in the cause.

The Altas, who were led by Jet Vidal’s 21 points, fell to their 12th straight defeat.

In juniors’ action, San Beda leaned on a triple-double performance by Baser Amer as it turned back a hard-fighting Mapua, 93-83, to close in on the twice-to-beat advantage in the Final Four.

Amer, playing his last season, came through with 24 points, 13 assists and 11 rebounds to propel the Cubs to their 11th win against a loss while sending the Mapua Robins to their sixth setback against the same number of wins.

Manila Standard Today