NCAA: San Beda prevails over Mapua, 84-75

MANILA, Philippines – San Beda overcame a pesky Mapua squad, 84-75, Friday to extend its winning streak to eight games in the NCAA basketball tournament at The Arena in San Juan.

The Lions remain in second place with a 9-1 card, while the Cardinals suffered their seventh straight loss and slid to 1-9.

La Salle looks to tame high-scoring Baby Tam

MANILA, Philippines- An inspired La Salle Zobel squad is eyeing its ninth win in the UAAP juniors’ basketball tournament this Sunday against Far Eastern U.

The Baby Archers, who are on top of the standings at 8-1, will try to put the cuffs on FEU’s Terrence Romeo, who set the UAAP juniors record by scoring 83 points in their recent win against UP.

Hotdogs now taller, quicker - Gregorio

MANILA, Philippines - Purefoods Tender Juicy started its pre-season buildup in earnest, signing up six key players and upgrading a team with height and speed.

Draft acquisitions Rico Maierhofer and Chris Timberlake were given three-year pacts while Paul Artadi, Romel Adducul and Roger Yap were given one-year contract-extension deals. Peter June Simon was the latest to be signed for a two-year contract worth P350,000 a month.

Archers try to end slump vs Maroons

MANILA, Philippines - La Salle hopes to come out of a three-game losing run and prop up its sagging Final Four campaign as it takes on dangerous State U today in the 72nd UAAP basketball tournament at The Arena in San Juan City.

Reeling from the impact of their 65-81 drubbing at the hands of archrivals and defending champs Ateneo Blue Eagles Sunday, the Green Archers move out of the Top Four as the race for the semifinal berths gets tougher in every play date among the contenders.

Stags, Lions trounce lowly foes

MANILA, Philippines - San Sebastian and San Beda repeated their emphatic first-round wins over Perpetual Help and Mapua, respectively, yesterday to keep their one-two spots in the 85th NCAA basketball tournament at Fil-Oil Flying V Arena in San Juan.

The amazing Stags stormed to a 47-30 halftime lead and fended off a third-quarter rally by the Altas to remain unscathed after 11 games with an 80-70 win.

Tams stretch win streak to 8

REIL Cervantes and Andy Barroca scored in double digits yesterday to power Far Eastern University to a 76-66 swamping of National University yesterday and to their longest winning streak in four years in the 72nd University Athletic Association of the Philippines men’s basketball tournament at the Araneta Coliseum.

Cervantes, back from a one-game suspension, made 14 points with Barroca to lead the Tams to their eighth straight victory in nine games.

PBA chairman backs Gilas 5; David signs pact

NEWLY-installed Philippine Basketball Association chairman Lito Alvarez joined the call to support the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas’ Smart-Gilas squad in its quest for a first-ever Olympic berth.

“Dati hinahanapan natin ng programa ’yung BAP [Basketball Association of the Philippines] and now that there’s already a program, it’s about time we support them,” Alvarez told Standard Today. “I think the long-term program built for the Smart-Gilas team is fitted for the international competitions.”

Golden Dragons nail cage opener

DASMARIÑAS, Cavite—The Universal College Golden Dragons turned to Lester Reyes and their interior defense in the endgame to repulse the La Salle-Dasmariñas Patriots, 79-76, yesterday in the opening of the eighth Universities and Colleges Athletic Association men’s basketball tournament at the Ugnayang La Salle Gymnasium here.

Reyes, who delivered a game-high 17 points, the same as Mac Montilla’s, scored on a layup with 42.4 seconds to go as the defending champions moved to safer grounds at 78-73, en route to the win

Menk stays with Kings

ERIC Menk, who has been a stalwart of the Barangay Ginebra frontline, plans to end his playing career with the Gin Kings, dousing cold water to reports that he was likely to move to another team for the forthcoming 2009 to 2010 Philippine Basketball Association season.

Ginebra coach Jong Uichico confirmed that they discussed the terms of Menk’s new contract.

San Sebastian notches No. 11

Games Monday (The Arena, San Juan)

10 a.m. — Arellano vs AUF (Jrs)

11 a.m. — Mapua vs Letran (Jrs)

2 p.m. — Arellano vs AUF (Srs)

4 p.m. — Mapua vs Letran (Srs)

San Sebastian College hurdled another road block in its bid for a two-round sweep of the elimination round as the Stags trampled Perpetual Help, 80-70, for their 11th straight win in the 85th NCAA basketball tournament on Friday at The Arena in San Juan City.

La Salle hopes to halt losing streak

UAAP BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT

Seniors W L Pct

Ateneo 8 1 .889

FEU 8 1 .889

UST 5 4 .556

UE 5 4 .556

La Salle 4 5 .444

NU 2 7 .222

UP 2 7 .222

Adamson 2 7 .222

Games on Saturday (The Arena)

2 p.m. — Adamson vs NU

4 p.m. — UP vs La Salle

Tamaraws seek solo UAAP lead; La Salle vs UP

Far Eastern University and De La Salle — two teams that figured in a storied rivalry in the late 1980s and early 1990s — take on separate cellar-dweller teams today at The Arena, both hoping for wins that will suit their earnest goals in the UAAP men’s basketball tournament.

The Tamaraws go up against Adamson University in the first tussle at 2 p.m. as they gun for the victory which will not only wrest for themselves the solo lead, but which will enable them to move closer to the Final Four.

Informatics edges STI in Naascu

Informatics International Colleges walked the tightrope before beating former champion STI Colleges, 77-75, to clinch solo third place behind defending champion San Sebastian College-Cavite and five-time champion University of Manila in the 9th Naascu men’s basketball tournament at the Pasay Sports Complex.

Led by Mark Angelo Montuano and Mark Anthony Limpat, the Icons seized the upperhand in the closing minutes and kept the Olympians at bay to post their ninth win in 12 games.

Stags march through 11th straight win

Ranged against teams with nothing to lose, San Sebastian College and San Beda College showcased their basketball prowess yesterday as they trampled their respective foes in the 85th NCAA men’s basketball tournament at The Arena in San Juan.

The Stags had a light workout, pulling off an easy 80-70 victory over University of Perpetual Help to remain unbeaten in 11 games and moving seven games shy of completing a rare 18-game sweep.