Okpe hits game winner as Chiefs hurdle Tigers

Manila, Philippines - Chris Okpe scored underneath with 19.7 seconds left as Arellano University squeaked past University of Santo Tomas, 64-63, yesterday in the FilOil Flying V Hanes Pre-Season Premier Cup at the Flying V Arena in San Juan.

Okpe took a pass from a driving Adrian Celada, who drew the Tigers defense, and knocked in the basket, giving the Chiefs their first taste of the lead at 65-64.

The Tigers had one last chance to salvage the game but Jeric Teng misfired from the long range at the buzzer, enabling the also-ran Chiefs to close out their campaign on a winning note.

‘’Our persistence and consistency somehow had positive results in the end. This is a big win for us. We’ll use this win to further lift the moral of the players,’’ said Arellano coach Leo Isaac.

The Chiefs wound up with a 2-5 slate.

Celada finished with a game-high 30 points and fell a rebound short of a double-double with nine boards. Vergel Zulueta and John Casino added 12 and 10 points, respectively.

The loss dropped UST to 3-3 in Group A for sixth, sending the Tigers to a must-win game in their last match against the San Beda Red Lions for a shot at the last quarterfinal slot.

Nigerian Karim Abdul turned in a double-double job of 18 points and 18 rebounds while rookie Kevin Ferrer tossed in 13 points for the Tigers.

Earlier, University of the Philippines posted its third straight win as it rolled past St. Benilde, 93-75, to advance to the quarters.

Four Maroons scored in double figures with Miggy Maniego firing 13 points and grabbing four rebounds, Jelo Montecastro adding 12 points and six assists, and Mike Silungan and Mike Gamboa chipping in 11 points apiece.

‘’We could’ve done better but we’re happy to play almost the whole line-up. We can still improve in some aspects,’’ said UP coach Ricky Dandan.

UP moved to third in Group B with a 5-2 record while St. Benilde closed out with a 0-8 slate.