Jose Rizal University fought back from a double-digit deficit before outplaying Arellano down the stretch for a 64-62 win in the NCAA Season 102 men’s basketball tournament on Tuesday at San Juan Arena.
Struggling all game long, Lawrence Mangubat hit a big 3-pointer before Sean Salvador calmly sank a pair of go-ahead free throws inside the final 20 seconds to rescue the Heavy Bombers, who trailed by as many as 14 in the second quarter.
Mangubat finished with 14 points, nine rebounds, three steals and two assists, while Chris Hubilla also had 14 on top of five rebounds, a steal, and a block. Hubilla set the final tally by splitting his freebies with 4.8 ticks to go.
‘I had to make so many adjustments because Arellano gave me such a tight defense,’ he said in Filipino after helping JRU improve to 4-1 in Group A.
‘What we told ourselves was, whoever’s open, shoot it. I just happened to get that opportunity.’
T-Mc Ongotan had 23 points and nine rebounds for Arellano, which had a chance to win, but Basty Valencia misfired on a 3-pointer as time ran out.