Lyceum's CJ Perez is Player of the Week anew

MANILA, Philippines — Lyceum is inching closer towards rewriting history in the 93rd NCAA seniors basketball tournament and so does prolific guard CJ Perez.

The 6-foot-1 Perez continues to come up with strong all around numbers, putting him on track of clinching the highest individual award and becoming the first homegrown cager to do so in the last three years.

Up against Final Four-bound Jose Rizal University last Friday, Perez proved a handful over his Heavy Bombers counterparts as he tallied a game-high of 24 points, eight rebounds, four assists and as many steals while leading the Pirates to a dominant 100-63 victory..

It was the 17th straight win overall for rampaging Lyceum, which could complete an impressive sweep of the double-round of eliminations with a repeat victory over defending champion San Beda on Thursday.

Perez, as expected, should play a main role anew. “We just want to honor the game like what coach (Topex Robinson) is telling us since Day One. We look forward to our rematch with the Red Lions and we’re gonna give our best,” he said.

Without a doubt, Perez’s sustained brilliance continues to grab the attention not only of his rivals but also of covering scribes who bestowed on him the Chooks-to-Go/NCAA Press Corps Player of the Week award for the third time this season.

Barring any ejection, Perez appears to be well on his way to the MVP title which was previously hoisted by Mapua’s Nigerian big man Allwell Oraeme in the last two years. Former Perpetual Help star Earl Scottie Thompson was the last local player to bag the coveted award in 2014.

Perez earned the nod over pro-bound Lervin Flores of resurgent Arellano University for the weekly citation given by scribes from the country’s national broadsheets, tabloids and online portals.