Filoil cagefest: Lyceum bombards Mapua with 12 triples

MANILA, Philippines – In the presence of former Mapua star Atoy Co who made a name for himself with his stellar outside shooting, the Lyceum of the Philippines University Pirates shot the daylights out of the San Juan Arena by hitting 12 three-pointers to upend the Cardinals, 92-83, in the Filoil Flying V Hanes Premier Cup on Monday.

Point guard Dexter Zamora and Paul John Soliman each hit three triples while Rhoel Maconocido and Joemari Lacastesantos knocked down a pair each.  Shane Ko and Wilson Baltazar each chipped in one long range bomb on for 41 percent shooting from the beyond the arc.

The 12 triples were the most number of made shots in a Filoil match since the Alex Nuyles-led Adamson drilled 15 against the Calvin Abueva-led San Sebastian Stags on April 21, 2011, a 90-81 win for the Falcons.

The Pirates overhauled an early seven-point deficit when Dexter Zamora drilled a pair of triples and newcomer center Joseph Gabayani scored a pair of conventional three-point plays off and-ones against Mapua.

After Rhoel Maconocido hit a triple to end the first period, a 24-22 lead for Lyceum, the Pirates never looked back. Lyceum posted as much as a 13-point lead, 77-64 after Wilson Baltazar closed the third period with a triple of his own.

 Mapua battled back to cut the deficit down to six after a fast break lay-up by Andoy Estrella, 79-73, with 6:39 left in the match. However the Pirates answered with a 7-0 burst to put the game away for their first win of the country’s premier pre-season college basketball tournament even as Mapua slumped to a 0-2 record.

Dexter Zamora led the way for Lyceum with 24 points and 3-5 three-point shooting. Rhoel Maconocido added 14 while Gabayani, the transferee from UST, tallied 13 points, seven rebounds, and three shot blocks.

Josan Nimes led Mapua with 24 points of his own while Jessie Saitanan bucked foul trouble to add 15. Joseph Eriobu pitched in with 13 markers.