NCAA basketball

Aurin, Perpetual eliminate Arellano to stay alive in NCAA Final Four hunt

Delfin Dioquino

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Aurin, Perpetual eliminate Arellano to stay alive in NCAA Final Four hunt

STILL ALIVE. Kim Aurin delivers the big hits down the stretch as Perpetual lives to fight another day.

NCAA Philippines Facebook page

Perpetual puts the shackles on Arellano star big man Justin Arana in the fourth quarter to advance to the final stage of the NCAA Season 97 play-in tournament

MANILA, Philippines – Perpetual kept its Final Four bid in NCAA Season 97 alive with a come-from-behind 59-52 win over Arellano in their play-in game at the San Juan Arena on Sunday, May 1.

Kim Aurin delivered the big hits down the stretch and finished with a game-high 16 points on top of 5 rebounds and 1 steal as the Altas overcame an eight-point deficit to advance to the final stage of the play-in tournament.

Perpetual will face St. Benilde for the last Final Four berth on Wednesday, May 4, at the same venue.

The Chiefs trailed by just 6 points with three minutes remaining following an Archie Concepcion triple, 48-54, before Aurin scored 5 straight markers off a trey and a layup that allowed the Altas to pull away for good.

Jielo Razon also came through for Perpetual with 10 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists, and 1 steal as he set the tone for his side in the final frame.

Razon scored 4 consecutive points and dished an assist to Mark Omega in a decisive 10-0 blast that left a 54-45 crater in favor of the Altas.

“The players worked hard for the given chance and opportunity,” Perpetual coach Myk Saguiguit said in Filipino. “I told my players before the game, we’re now at the door, we have to knock loudly for it to open.”

Most Valuable Player contender Justin Arana fell just a point short of another double-double, posting 9 points, 17 rebounds, 2 blocks, and 1 steal as he helped Arellano build a 42-34 cushion in the third quarter.

That lead, though, immediately vanished no thanks to the Altas unloading a 10-1 run capped by a Cris Pagaran triple to end the third period up 44-43.

Perpetual then put the shackles on Arana in the fourth quarter as the star big man went scoreless in the period before he sat on the bench for the final five minutes of his NCAA career.

Lean Martel added 10 points and 6 rebounds for the Altas, while Omega put up 8 points and 9 rebounds in a stellar defensive job against Arana.

Jordan Sta. Ana netted 13 points to go with 3 steals for the Chiefs, who finished the season at sixth place.

The Scores

Perpetual 59 – Aurin 16, Razon 10, Martel 10, Omega 8, Pagaran 7, Barcuma 6, Egan 2, Abis 0, Cuevas 0, Nunez 0, Sevilla 0.

Arellano 52 – Sta. Ana 12, Arana 9, Concepcion 8, Sablan 7, Cruz 5, Oliva 4, Caballero 2, Valencia 2, Doromal 2, Steinl 1, Carandang 0, Dela Cruz 0.

Quarters: 13-14, 25-24, 44-43, 59-52.

– Rappler.com

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Delfin Dioquino

Delfin Dioquino dreamt of being a PBA player, but he did not have the skills to make it. So he pursued the next best thing to being an athlete – to write about them. He took up journalism at the University of Santo Tomas and joined Rappler as soon as he graduated in 2017.