Red-hot Generals seek to fan run against Altas

MANILA, Philippines - Emilio Aguinaldo College hopes to ride the momentum of its shock win over erstwhile unbeaten Letran as it takes on another title contender Perpetual Help even as Mapua and Jose Rizal U dispute solo fourth in the NCAA men’s basketball tournament at The Arena in San Juan today.

After losing their first five games, the Generals wheeled back into contention with back-to-back victories, including a stirring 83-69 rout of the heavily fancied Knights last Friday, tightening up not only the battle for the top spot but also the Final Four race.

“Our defense and rebounding helped us a lot in our last two games. If we can somehow sustain it, we’ll have a chance against Perpetual,” said EAC coach Andy de Guzman.

But the Generals will have a tough task neutralizing Bright Akhuetie, who dropped 31 points in the Altas’ 76-66 victory over the Arellano U Chiefs last Thursday as the Las Piñas-based squad moved to solo third at 5-2 behind Letran’s 7-1 and San Beda’s 6-2 records.

Gametime is at 4 p.m. after the 2 p.m. clash between the surging Cardinals and the Bombers, tied with the Chiefs at fourth with 4-3 marks.

Against Letran, Remy Morada took charge for EAC in the fourth, pouring in 12 of his 18 points while Cameroonian Hamadou Laminou posted season-highs 20 points, 24 rebounds and four blocks.

De Guzman hopes to draw another solid game from his explosive duo and the rest of the Generals as they try to stretch their run to three.

 “They’re playing inspired right now so we know it’s going to be another difficult game for us,” said Perpetual coach Aric del Rosario heading to the duel of the league’s top rebounding teams.