Nzeusseu lifts Pirates past Altas

MANILA, Philippines — Cameroonian Mike Nzeusseu hit the game-winning basket with a fraction of a second to go as Lyceum of the Philippines escaped with an 87-85 victory over Perpetual Help yesterday to jump to joint third with Letran in the 95th NCAA basketball tournament at the Flying V Centre in San Juan City.

Tied at 85-all and both teams firing blanks for a two-minue stretch, Nzeusseu caught a pass from the corner from Jayson David and scored underneath that turned out the marginal bucket as Jayvee Marcelino blocked a three-point attempt by Edgar Charcos at the buzzer.

That gave the Pirates their fourth straight win and fifth overall against a loss that allowed them to catch up with the Knights at No. 3.

San Beda and St. Benilde currently lead the way with pristine 4-0 (win-loss) records.

Nzeusseu paced his team with 18 points that he spiked with 10 rebounds while Raymar Caduyac and Jaycee Marcelino chipped in 14 and 13 points, respectively.

The Altas fell to 2-4.

The Pirates set the pace early and took a 25-16 lead, an advantage they nurtured and once led by as much as 15 points in the third period.

But UPHSD mounted a spirited comeback anchored on Jeff Egan, who exploded for 11 of his 13 points in the final canto.