Lyceum shocks Mapua for early share of lead in Filoil cagefest

MANILA, Philippines – Lyceum of the Philippines pulled the rug from under reigning NCAA MVP Allwell Oraeme and Mapua with a stunning 91-82 victory Wednesday to jump into the early share of the lead in the Filoil Flying V Premier Cup at The Arena in San Juan City.

Wilson Baltazar led all scorers with 17 points, including two booming triples, while Mer Ayaay and Jebb Bulawan chipped in 15 and 13, respectively, to lead the Pirates to their first win.

The game also marked the return of veteran guard Dexter Zamora from an ACL injury last year that cost him to miss the whole of last season. He scattered 10 points in 22 quality minutes in his comeback.

"He's one of the team leaders of this team and we're happy he's back," said LPU coach Topex Robinson, referring to Zamora.

It was a massive win by the Pirates as they brought down the heavily favored Cardinals, who made it to the NCAA Final Four last year following the MVP season of the bull-strong Oraeme.

Robinson was all praises for banger Joseph Gabayni, who came off the bench and finished with eight points and a team-best 11 rebounds.

Far Eastern U, the UAAP titlist, jump-started its bid with a 77-64 win over San Sebastian.

Arellano U likewise bared its fangs and downed Emilio Aguinaldo, 79-72, to seize a share of the early lead.

Skipper Jio Jalalon led the way with 18 points while Zach Nicholls added 10 points, including three from behind the arc.

AU mentor Jerry Codinera, however, was far from satisfied.

"Individually, we're stronger than last year. But as a team, we're not and we have a long ways to go," he said.