Pinto’s buzzer beater snaps CSB’s winning streak

MANILA, Philippines – The Heartbreak Kids strike again.

In the game of basketball, the little things matter, like making free throws and boxing out for rebounds. The College of St. Benilde Blazers had the chance to win their fifth straight game on Friday, August 8, but failed to do both and suffered a loss to the Arellano Chiefs, 67-66.

With the game’s final quarter hitting the 5 minute mark, Arellano held on to a slim 57-55 lead over the pesky Blazers, who all afternoon refused to go down despite trailing by huge margins at certain points.

An unneeded foul by Arellano sent Luis Sinco to the line, where he converted both charities to deadlock the game. Not long after, Jonathan Grey attacked the rim and converted a tough layup, but the basket was waved off after the CSB player was caught extending his arm to push off his defender, resulting to an offensive foul.

Unhappy with the call, a technical foul was called on the Blazers’ bench for “improper bench decorum,” putting the Chiefs ahead by two once again at the free throw line. However, it didn’t take long for Grey to tie the game again by virtue of a breakaway layup.

At the two-minute mark, Arellano regained the lead at the free throw line after momentarily losing it. But Alfonso Saavedra quickly countered with a long-2 to make the count 63-62 in favor of Benilde, 57 seconds left.

Off an AU time-out, both teams exchanged turnovers. The Chiefs got the handle back, but John Pinto was unable to make his attempt, which turned out to be an airball. Arellano then fouled Sinco, who made both free throws to make the contest a three-point game. The next possession, Keith Agovida converted a tip-in to cut CSB’s lead to one, 65-64.

Paolo Taha got three opportunities at the line to extend his team’s lead – the third of which off a lane violation – but only made the first. Dioncee Holts was then fouled with 3.1 seconds left and made the first of two. However, CSB failed to box out after the missed free throw, opening the door for Pinto to grab an offensive board and nailing a basket at the buzzer for the win.

Once again, the CSB Heartbreak Kids returned, adding another devastating loss to their already filled collection.

The Chiefs improve to 7-2 and maintain their second place spot in the league standings, while the Blazers fall back to .500 at 4-4.

Pinto had 19 markers and 5 rebounds to lead the winning side, while CSB was spearheaded by Mark Romero, who had 21 points.

Scores

Arellano (67): Pinto 19, Jalalon 12, Agovida 8, Holts 7, Salcedo 6, Bangga 4, Gumaru 3, Palma 2, Ciriacruz 2, Caperal 2, Enriquez 2, Hernandez 0, Ortega 0, Cadavis 0

CSB (66):  Romero 21, Taha 16, Grey 13, Saavedra 7, Pajarillaga 4, Bartolo 1, Jonson 0, Nayve 0 Argamino 0, Ongtenco 0, Altamirano 0.

Quarter Scoring: 15-8; 30-26; 47-46; 67-66

JRU squeaks by EAC, 81-79

In the first game of the day, the Jose Rizal University Bombers squeaked by the Emilio Aguinaldo College Generals, 81-79, to improve to 5-3 on the season. 

Philip Paniamogan had 18 markers while Jaycee Asuncion finished with 15. Rookie Tey Teodoro also had a good output, finishing with 14 and playing a huge role in JRU’s third quarter run.

John Tayongtong led the Generals with 21 points.

Scores

JRU (81): Paniamogan 18, Ascuncion 15, Teodoro 14, Sancehez 11, Mabulac 8, Grospe 6, Abdul Wahab 4, Benavides 3, Salvaeria 2

EAC (79): Tayongtong 21, Happi 12, Arquero 12, Onwubere 11, Aguilar 10, Serrano 5, Santos 4, Jamon 4, Pascual 0

Quarter Scores: 18-24; 38-44; 66-56; 81-79

– Rappler.com