Omandac clutch as Lyceum downs Benilde to reclaim share of lead

MANILA, Philippines – Jearlan Omandac came through the clutch for the Lyceum Pirates as they defeated the College of St. Benilde Blazers in a close one, 84-81, in the NCAA Season 99 men’s basketball tournament at the FilOil EcoOil Centre on Friday, November 10.

With the all-important win, Lyceum reclaimed a share of the top spot with the Mapua Cardinals with an 11-3 record, while pushing down Benilde, which had a golden opportunity to forge a two-way tie with the Pirates at second place, to 9-5. 

Despite struggling from beyond the arc throughout the game, Omandac took it upon himself and knocked down a cold-blooded triple at the 1:03 mark of the fourth and final quarter to give the Pirates a much-needed two-possession separation from the Blazers, 80-76.

Benilde’s Migs Oczon quickly responded with his own three-pointer off the timeout to pull the Blazers back within a point before Omandac nailed another long bomb from the exact same spot to reestablish Lyceum’s four-point cushion, 83-79, with 33.3 seconds left.

Omandac then had a chance to seal the deal with 9.1 ticks left, but the Lyceum guard failed to convert on both of his free throws, leaving the door open for the Blazers to send the game into overtime in the final possession.

Unfortunately for Benilde, Prince Carlos’ potential game-tying trey rimmed out as time expired. 

Enoch Valdez led the Pirates in scoring with 15 points, while John Bravo and John Barba had 14 and 13, respectively.

Omandac, for his part, finished with 9 points on 2-of-6 shooting from deep.

Oczon paced the Blazers with game-highs of 19 points and 7 rebounds, while Carlos added 16 markers in the loss. 

Like Lyceum, the Perpetual Help Altas scored a huge 61-57 win over the San Beda Red Lions to keep their Final Four hopes alive. 

Arthur Roque put up 19 points to lead the Altas, while Mark Omega chalked up a double-double of 12 points and 10 rebounds.

Jacob Cortez carried the fight for the Red Lions with a game-high 22 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 blocks. 

Perpetual tied the EAC Generals at 7-7, while fourth-seeded San Beda slipped to 8-5.

The Scores

First game

Lyceum 84 – Valdez 15, Bravo 14, Barba 13, Umali 9, Omandac 9, Guadana 7, Penafiel 6, Cunanan 5, Versoza 2, Villegas 2, Montano 2, Fuentes 0.

St. Benilde 81 – Oczon 19, Carlos 16, Gozum 13, Corteza 11, Nayve 7, Morales 7, Marcos 5, Arciaga 3, Turco 0, Mara 0, Marasigan 0, Cajucom 0, Jarque 0.

Quarters: 18-20, 43-45, 59-64, 84-81.

Second game

Perpetual 61 – Roque 19, Pagaran 12, Omega 10, Abis 6, Razon 5, Nitura 4, Cuevas 3, Nunez 2, Barcuma 0, Boral 0, Gelsano 0.

San Beda 57 – Cortez 22, Andrada 11, Payosing 7, Puno 4, Gonzales 4, Cuntapay 3, Jopia 2, Visser 2, Royo 2, Tagle 0, Alfaro 0.

Quarters: 22-15, 33-35, 47-45, 61-57.

– Rappler.com