Enoch Valdez took over as he steered Lyceum of the Philippines University back to the Final Four after a 73-65 win over San Sebastian College-Recoletos in NCAA Season 98 on Sunday.
Valdez scored a career-high 30 points alongside 11 rebounds and three steals in a dominant showing for the Pirates.
He scored 14 of those points in the crucial fourth quarter, where he shot 5-for-6 from the field and 4-for-4 from the free throw line.
Lyceum ascended to 11-5 to clinch a playoffs spot for the first time since 2019, while San Sebastian dropped to 6-8, but remained in contention.
Ichie Altamirano instigated the Stags’ third quarter rally where they unleashed a 23-2 rampage to take a 46-38 lead after trailing by a double-digit deficit at the break
But the Pirates answered with an 11-3 run of their own to end the frame with a knotted scoreline of 49-all.
Lyceum then raced to a 57-51 lead courtesy of Valdez with Enzo Navarro facilitating their offense before he got disqualified from the game with 4:36 left.
Valdez then fired nine straight points to give Lyceum a 68-60 advantage in the final 1:35 before JM Bravo nailed a huge triple to make it a 71-63 spread.
Bravo finished with 10 points, including his clutch shot, and eight rebounds.
With the win, Lyceum will join defending champion Colegio de San Juan de Letran as the first two teams in the semifinals cast.
Lyceum was off to a hot start, opening the game with a 13-0 run before leading by as much as 16, 29-13, after a John Barba layup. With Navarro leading the way, the Pirates were able to hold on to a 36-23 cushion at the half.
Rhinwill Yambing showed the way for the Stags, collecting eight markers early to keep the fight for San Sebastian.
Romel Calahat scored 19 points to pace San Sebastian while Altamirano finished with 11.
The scores:
LPU 73 - Valdez 30, Bravo 10, Navarro 7, Barba 6, Umali 5, Guadana 4, Montano 4, Cunanan 3, Larupay 2, Villegas 2, Penafiel 0, Aviles 0, Omandac 0.
San Sebastian 65 - Calahat 19, Altamirano 11, Yambing 8, Una 7, Desoyo 6, Villapando 6, Are 4, Suico 3, Sumoda 1, Escobido 0, Cosari 0, Shanoda 0.
Quarters: 18-8, 36-23, 49-49, 73-65.
—JMB, GMA Integrated News
