MANILA – King Gurtiza delivered a career performance as Emilio Aguinaldo College Generals prevailed over San Sebastian College Golden Stags, 101-94, in NCAA Season 100 men’s basketball on Saturday at the FilOil EcoOil Arena in San Juan.
Gurtiza finished with a career-high of 27 points, including five three-point conversions, to go with five rebounds and four assists as the Generals moved up to fourth spot with 6-6 win-loss slate.
Wilmar Oftana added 17 markers, while Harvey Pagsanjan and Nico Quinal contributed 16 and 11 points, respectively, for EAC, which knocked down a total of 14 three-pointers in the win.
The Generals were comfortably ahead for most part of the second half until the Golden Stags mounted a huge run to cut the deficit to as low as four points, but Oftana connected on a fastbreak layup to preserve the win.
“We badly needed this win kasi, kapag natalo kami, we’re gonna be at the bottom of the standings so it still gave us a fighting chance,” Generals head coach Jerson Cabiltes said after the game.
Tristan Felebrico finished with a double-double of 30 points and 11 boards, Reggz Gabat added 21 points, while Rafael Are ended with 10 points, nine boards, and six assists. They fell to a 3-9 record.
Meanwhile, Arellano University Chiefs (4-8) leaned on a strong performance by Lorenz Capulong to defeat Lyceum of the Philippines Pirates (6-6) and keep their Final Four hopes alive.
Capulong erupted for a career-high 30 points together with 16 rebounds for the Chiefs, while Maverick Vinoya contributed 14 markers and Troy Valencia ended with nine points.
“Unang-una ‘yun kasi ‘yung pinractice namin, ‘yung endgame namin. Kasi doon kami laging sumasablay,” Arellano coach Chico Manabat said. “Siguro binigay sa amin ‘yung breaks and chance to win the game.”
It was a double whammy for the Pirates as they also lost veteran guard JM Bravo late in the game after briefly losing his consciousness following a collision with Chiefs’ Renz Abiera. He however regained his consciousness in the hospital./PN
