Ken Villapando took charge late for San Sebastian College-Recoletos, stopping Lyceum of the Philippines University’s rally and taking an 83-71 win in the NCAA Season 97 seniors basketball, Sunday at La Salle Green Hills’ St. Benilde Gym in Mandaluyong City.
The wingman provided the crucial offensive rebound and then busted into a personal 5-0 run to seal the win for the Golden Stags.
With 1:30 left and the Pirates within six, Villapando collared a JM Calma miss and converted the resulting free throws off a foul. He then put on the dagger to stretch the lead into an insurmountable 11-point lead, 80-69, with just 57.6 seconds left.
Villapando finished the game with 12 points and 14 rebounds, to go with three steals and one block.
San Sebastian’s head coach Egay Macaraya was pleased with how his players rose up from that heartbreaking loss to San Beda University last Friday. Moreover, the Golden Stags were without Ichie Altamirano (suspension) and Michael Are (injury).
“Ang pinaka-importante rito is kasi masyadong down yung Baste eh,” he said. “Kasi ang nangyari kasi yung una, natalo kami sa San Beda, then namatay yung namatay yung father ng assistant coach ko na si Coach Raffy [Gusi]. So, everybody was very down. But still nahugot pa rin namin.
“We dedicated this game for coach Raffy, and everybody performed well. Nakita naman natin. Nagustuhan ko lang sa team is ngayon nakita mo na yung character,” he added.
Calma was solid throughout the game for the Stags and posted a new career-high of 23 points, adding to 11 boards and two assists. Rommel Calahat added 15 markers, eight rebounds, and four assists.
Omar Larupay paced Lyceum with his 14 points, 11 rebounds, two steals, and one block. But it was Enoch Valdez who kept them in the game, ending with 12 markers, five boards, three assists, and two steals.
The Stags entered a logjam with Emilio Aguinaldo College, University of Perpetual Help System DALTA, and Arellano University as all teams hold a 2-3 record. Meanwhile, the Pirates slipped to 1-4 with just four games left in their elimination round schedule.
San Sebastian will look to break out of a bottleneck against EAC on April 13 at 12 NN. On the other hand, Lyceum will look for a huge upset when it battles unbeaten Colegio de San Juan de Letran (4-0) on April 17 at 3 p.m.
The Scores:
San Sebastian 83 – Calma 23, Calahat 15, Villapando 12, Sumoda 8, Una 8, Dela Cruz 5, Gabat 4, Shanoda 4, Felebrico 2, Cosari 2, Desoyo 0, Abarquez 0.
Lyceum 71 – Larupay 14, Valdez 12, Navarro 11, Guinto 8, Bravo 7, Guadana 7, Remulla 4, Cunanan 2, Garro 2, Umali 2, Barba 2.
Quarterscores: 23-20, 46-29, 61-51, 83-71.
