EAC edges Benilde to keep semis bid afloat

MANILA, Philippines -- Emilio Aguinaldo went to Jan Jamon and John Tayongtong in the clutch as it turned back St. Benilde, 85-83, to close in on San Sebastian for the fourth and last Final Four spot in the 89th NCAA basketball tournament at The Arena in San Juan City Thursday.

Down by three points with over a minute left in the game, Jamon knocked in a triple to knot at 83-all with 20.7 seconds to go before Tayongtong threads through the middle to score the game-winning lay-up.

The Blazers had one more chance to snatch the game but Travis Jonson misfired on a 3-pointer with 1.2 ticks remaining as the Generals held on to their eighth win against seven losses to inch closer to the idle Stags, who precariously clung to the No. 4 spot with an 8-6 (win-loss) mark.

"We made the stops but most importantly, we made the basket when it mattered most and I have to thank Jan and John and all the players for getting this win," said EAC coach Gerry Esplana.

After Jamon tied it, Jonson drained a triple himself that would have shattered the deadlock and gave St. Benilde a three-point lead. But it was nullified after teammate Jose Alfonso Saavedra was called for an illegal pick.

It was another heartbreaker for the Blazers, who suffered their third two-point loss plus four one-point defeats that have earned them the tag as the heartbreak kids of the oldest collegiate league in the land.

Tayongtong, a transferee from Arellano U, ended up the best player of the game after he finished with 17 points highlighted by that dagger of a lay-up in heavy traffic. He spiked his sterling effort with five rebounds and two assists.

After escaping with the win, Esplana could only clinch his fist in jubilation as the Generals made it past the .500 mark for the first time since entering the league four seasons back.

"It's a nice feeling, winning and playing like this. I've never been this happy since I started coaching," he said.

St. Benilde, which had no big men left to stop Tayongtong for mocking its interior defense with that driving lay-up after big men Saavedra, Jeff Ongteco and Roberto Bartolo all fouled out, fell to its 10th defeat against five wins.

A win by either San Sebastian or EAC will eliminate the Blazers.

Cameroonian Noube Happi led the team with 20 points while Igee King, son of former PBA star Abe, and Jack Arquero added 16 and 12 points, respectively.

The scores:

EAC (85) -- Happi 20, Tayongtong 17, King 16, Arquero 12, Paguia 7, Jamon 6, Morada 5, Hiole Manga 2, Munsayac 0, Onwubere 0.

CSB (83) -- Taha 20, Jonson 13, Romero 13, Grey 12, Bartolo 6, Ongteco 6, Garcia 6, Sinco 5, Saavedra 2, Argamino 0, Carlos 0.

Quarters: 12-18, 37-32, 61-59, 85-83.