Basti Valencia made sure to prove that despite their struggles in the NCAA Season 102 Seniors Basketball Crossover Round, the Arellano University Chiefs are no fluke.
Valencia nailed the go-ahead basket to avert a late collapse, lifting Arellano to a stunning 56-55 victory over defending champions San Beda University on Tuesday at the Filoil EcoOil Centre.
With 11.7 seconds remaining, the 6-foot-2 guard posted up Penny Estacio before sinking a fadeaway jumper to give the Chiefs the lead.
On the ensuing possession, Aldous Torculas missed his attempt, allowing Arellano to complete the upset.
Valencia finished with seven points on 12 attempts and seven rebounds as the Chiefs snapped a three-game skid to improve to 5-3 in Group B, moving half a game ahead of the idle Letran Knights.
“Andyan naman si ‘Robin.’ Eksakto, first option ko si ‘Robin,’ and nag-deliver naman,” said Arellano head coach Chico Manabat, referring to Valencia as T-Mc Ongotan’s Batman.
Arellano built a 15-point advantage, 40-25, before the Red Lions mounted a comeback.
In the final frame, Daniel Marcelo, Torculas, and RC Calimag spearheaded San Beda’s rally to put the defending champions back in contention.
Torculas drained a three-pointer with a little over three minutes remaining to give the Red Lions a 55-53 lead.
However, Aaron Manansala split his free throws moments later to trim the deficit to one before Valencia delivered the decisive basket.
“Sinabi ko lang sa mga bata to just believe para ma-break namin yung 0-3 namin sa crossover,” said Manabat.
Ongotan led the Chiefs with 17 points on 17 attempts and eight rebounds.
Arellano will next face the Lyceum of the Philippines University Pirates on October 22 to close out the crossover phase.
San Beda saw its three-game winning streak snapped, dropping to 5-3 in Pool A — one-and-a-half games behind leaders JRU and Benilde.
Torculas and Marcelo were the only double-digit scorers for San Beda, finishing with 17 and 10 points, respectively. Torculas also posted 11 rebounds, four blocks, and two steals.
The Red Lions will look to bounce back against the Emilio Aguinaldo College Generals on October 19.
The Scores:
Arellano 56 – Ongotan 17, Borromeo 7, Valencia 7, Vinoya 6, Manansala 5, Geronimo 4, Buenaventura 4, Flores 3, Hernal 2, Langit 1, Camay 0, Barraca 0, Cabotaje 0, Abierra 0.
San Beda 55 – Torculas 17, Marcelo 10, Puno 7, Calimag RC 7, Estacio 4, Dabao 4, Lina 3, Songcuya 1, Jamora 0, Reyes 0, Etulle 0, Jalbuena 0, Efron 0.
Quarterscores: 17-11, 38-25, 48-41, 56-55.
