Fired-up Altas end Knights 8-game run

MANILA, Philippines - Ousted Perpetual Help, a team playing with nothing to lose, sent shockwaves to NCAA seniors basketball tournament as the Altas claimed the scalp of semis-bound Letran, 68-53, at the Arena yesterday.

The Altas unloaded a 10-0 bomb to close out the third period and seize control, 53-44, hanging tough against the Knights’ physical game until the final buzzer to complete the reversal, their first win over Letran since a 71-68 verdict way back in 2004.

The Altas snapped the Knights’ eight-game streak, sending erstwhile No. 2 Letran down to third with 12-3.

Josan Nimes (22 points, six assists) and Yousef Taha (19 markers, 11 boards, five assists) led the way as Mapua trampled Emilio Aguinaldo College, 98-73, to get back to a share of fourth with idle Jose Rizal at 7-9.

“We know Letran plays very physical and I told the players to never let it affect them and just concentrate on the game,” said Perpetual coach Jimwell Gican, whose wards improved to 4-13 with still one assignment left this season, doubling with victories last year.

“We didn’t expect to reach four wins considering what happened to us during the off-season,” he added, referring to the resignation of former head coach Boris Aldeguer and the league’s decision to declare recruits Paul Nuilan and Marlon Gomez ineligible.

Jet Vidal fired 18 points, including 7-of-8 shooting from the foul line, while Justine Alano added 10 points and six rebounds for Perpetual, which made Letran pay for its erratic ways (23 errors which Perpetual converted to 21 points).

“We’re very flat, we played without a sense of urgency,” said Letran coach Louie Alas, whose team dropped half-a-game behind San Beda (12-2), its fiercest rival for the No. 2 and twice-to-beat advantage in the playoffs.

“We lost but we didn’t die. Our fate is still on our hands,” he added.

Alas’ son and Letran’s top gunner Kevin Alas shot only nine on a 4-of-12 shooting, a far cry from his 17.7 point average. Jay Espiritu (14 markers) and Jam Cortes (11 points, 11 rebounds) led Letran’s scoring parade.

Mapua snapped a three-game slide at the expense of EAC, which bowed out of the next round with their 12th loss in 16 games.

“I challenged the players to play hard since we came from three straight losses. I told them we still have a chance (to make the Final Four) so they worked very hard on practice,” said Mapua coach Chito Victolero, who got at least two points from all 14 players he fielded in.

Jan Jamon fired a career-high 27 spiked by five triples for EAC.