FilOil: Abarcar posts 22 as San Beda downs Perpetual

In the thick of the third quarter, Altas forward Justine Alano sneered at Red Lion Ola Adeogun, pumped his chest and made a throat-slitting gesture at the 6'9" Cameroonian, as the Altas grabbed the lead from the Lions.

But in the end, it was Francis Abarcar and his 14 fourth quarter points that gave the San Beda College Red Lions an 82-75 win over a hostile University of Perpetual Help System-Dalta Altas team, Saturday at the FilOil Flying V Arena, in the elimination round of the FilOil Flying V Hanes Premier Cup.

Abarcar scored 14 of his 22 points in a decisive fourth quarter, helping the Lions rally from a six-point third quarter deficit in the last five minutes of the game. San Beda outscored Perpetual 29-16 in the final quarter to go home with the W.

“Sobrang saya ko ngayon kasi first time nangyari [ito] sakin. Gusto ko lang talagang tumulong sa team,” said the second-year player after the game.

The chippy Altas still led midway through the quarter, until Perpetual Help big man Nosa Omorogbe split his charities to knot the game at 70-70. After a drive by Omorogbe, Abarcar drained a three-ball to give lead to San Beda for good.

The Red Lions’ ball-handlers found a streaking Ola Adeogun for a one-handed tomahawk slam to up the lead to 75-72. Alano snapped the scoring drought for the Altas with a split, but Amer hit a dagger three that made it a two-possession ballgame with under three minutes to play.

Abarcar was not done, as he hit a breakaway lay-up to solidify the San Beda lead at 80-73 before drawing an unsportsmanlike foul off Altas point guard Chris Elopre to earn two freebies at the line. He and Dela Rosa engaged in a shooting duel with Omorogbe at the charity stripe, but all was done after Omorogbe airballed his final attempt with 2.4 seconds remaining.

"Hopefully this will give us the needed push and energy for our game against Saint Benilde," added San Beda head coach Boyet Fernandez. "Ang problema lang namin is probably because we came from the States and more of individual skills kami. We’re trying to improve now in terms of team offense and team defense."

The Red Lions improve to 4-2, tying the Adamson Falcons for the third seed in Group A play. They still have a chance to clinch the third spot, provided they win all their remaining games, including one against Adamson next Saturday. The Altas still rank seventh after the loss (1-5) and have two games left (vs. AdU, vs. UP) to better their record.

SBC netted 30 of their 62 attempts (48 percent), and converted six of their 17 long balls. They added 16 points from 21 tries at the free throw line and  crashed the glass, out-rebounding the Altas 47-43.

Abarcar scored 22 points in 20 minutes on a 7-9 shooting performance. Amer tallied 15 points, 10 rebounds, and six assists, while Adeogun’s stats-line read 13 points, 11 rebounds, two assists, and one block. Rome dela Rosa also added 12 points.

The Altas put together an 8-2 spurt to start the game, as Harold Arboleda and Gerald Dizon drained triples while Kervin Lucente chipped in a hook. Both teams looked to run, as San Beda got good looks but couldn’t finish. Coach Fernandez then slotted Ola Adeogun in the middle, which led to Perpetual firing from distance but to no avail.

The Red Lions countered with a 9-1 run of their own, after Alano and Arboleda failed to make their free throws to extend the lead. Dela Cruz streaked inside for a lay-up, while Adeogun converted on baskets from the interior, which prompted Perpetual coach Aric Del Rosario to call a timeout, inserting Nick Omorogbe at center.

A three by Arboleda stopped the bleeding for the Altas, 11-8, but the Red Lions again roared to a 10-1 run with six points coming from San Beda reserve Francis Abarcar. Perpetual kept chucking jumpers from range, while Omorogbe struggled against Adeogun, as the first quarter came to a close, 19-12.

Both teams fought tooth-for-tooth in the second quarter, trading baskets, while the lead swung between three to five points. After Juneric Baloria’s lay-up cut the lead to five, 19-14, David Semerad countered with a jumper to extend the lead to seven, 21-14. Jumpers by Arboleda and G-Jay Ylagan swiped four points off the lead, making it a 21-18 game, but Anthony Semerad swished in a three to keep the lead at 24-18.

As Coach Fernandez sat Adeogun, Omorogbe had more breathing room, scoring five straight points for the Altas, 26-23. A triple by Joel Jolangcob at the top of the key, and a split by Omorogbe stole the lead for Perpetual at 29-28, but Dela Cruz took back what was theirs with a tip from Amer.

Both teams continued firing at each other until Dela Rosa scored the final basket of the second canto via a cutting drive, as San Beda headed to the intermission with a slim 39-36 lead.

After the break, Baloria’s lay-up further thinned the lead to 49-48 after a lane drive, but San Beda scored seven straight off Amer and Dela Rosa. Both teams went at each other again, trading barbs until Alano drew the harm from Adeogun, as his basketball fell through, 50-48.

Amer cut the lead to a single point after calmly sinking a floater on top of the UPHS defense, 54-53, but Omorogbe found Alano on the weak side for an easy deuce, 56-53. The Altas protected the lead until the bell rang, and Omorogbe swung a three-ball at the buzzer to wedge a six-point difference between them and the Red Lions, 59-53.

Abarcar opened the fourth quarter with a triple to trim the six-point lead to three, 59-56. Omorogbe tried to take them back via charities, but Amer drained another triple to cut the deficit to just two points, 61-59. Abarcar then found himself in the open court and wasted no time to bank an easy lay-up to tie the game, 61-61.

Arboleda hit a triple from the left corner pocket to snare the lead, 64-61, but Abarcar nipped the Altas’ defense to bank in a put-back plus the foul. His bonus point forged a deadlock at 64-64, but Alano countered with a sweeping hook and Omorogbe split his charities after drawing a foul on a fast break possession, 67-64.

As Adeogun hit a putback, Omorogbe signaled to coach Del Rosario, asking for some air, but was denied a chance to sit. Baloria hit a triple to give his Altas a four-point advantage, 70-66, but Amer neutralized it with a triple of his own, 70-69.

A free throw by Adeogun tied the game at 70-all, and Abarcar powered a 12-5 run to put the wily Altas away.

In contrast to San Beda, Perpetual made only 25 of their 71 field goal attempts (35 percent), plus only 14 of their 29 freebies. They shot a stellar 36 percent from downtown by making 10 out of 28 tries, and committed only six turnovers. They just could not sustain their effort in the fourth.

Baloria led the Altas with 22 points on 9-16 shooting, while Omorogbe notched 17 points, 10 rebounds, and five assists. He made only four out of his 17 attempts though and 7-of-14 free throws. Justine Alano chimed in with 10 points and six rebounds.

The Red Lions face off against the CSB Blazers (3-4) on Monday, May 27 at 12pm, while the Altas seek to contain the surging Adamson University Falcons (4-2) on Wednesday, May 29 at 2:30pm. - RAF/AMD, GMA News

 

The scores:

 

SBC – Abarcar 22, Amer 15, Adeogun 13, Dela Rosa 12, Semerad A. 7, Koga 6, Dela Cruz 4, Semerad D. 2, Pascual 1, Sara 0
 

UPHSD –Baloria 22, Omorogbe 17, Alano 10, Arboleda 9, Ylagan 5m Elopre 4, Jolangcob 3, Dizon 3, Lucente 2, Thopson 0, Bantayan 0

 

Quarter scoring: 19-12, 39-36, 53-59, 82-75