Agem Miranda and William Sy dropped 20 points each to help lift Jose Rizal University with a 97-74 routing of Emilio Aguinaldo College in the NCAA Season 98 men's basketball tournament Saturday, Sept. 17, at the Filoil EcoOil Centre in San Juan City.
The Heavy Bombers vented their ire and waxed hot from the three-point range sparked by Sy's fiery shooting, draining five of the team's 12 three-pointers en route to its first win of the season.
Miranda and Sy also had six and five rebounds, respectively, JL Delos Santos did an all-around performance with 17 points, five rebounds, four assists, and four steals, while John Amores took care of business in the paint with 11 points, 10 rebounds, and four steals as JRU barged into the win column with a 1-2 record.
Bombers head coach Louie Gonzales said the team took inspiration from its heartbreaking 101-97 loss against defending champion Letran last Sept. 14.
"What fuels us to finish strong is during our last game, we did our best already. But again, for us to make a statement na we really belong to this league, it needs to be our absolute best, every second, every minute doon sa floor," said Gonzales.
"Kaya 'yon 'yong challenge ko sa players ko. Not much doon sa game plan kasi given na naman 'yon. Pero 'yong pagtrabahuhan nila lahat para pakita nila na 'I belong here sa NCAA.'"
Following a strong second half, the Bombers stepped on the gas further in the third quarter and uncorked an 11-0 run to build a commanding 63-41 lead which pretty much took their separation on a different level.
But JRU wasn't done with business yet, torching EAC even in the payoff period to lead by as many as 27 points and gain its highest margin at 87-60.
Nat Cosejo's 27-point career-high performance for the Generals went into naught, Ralph Robin chipped in 18 points, while Allen Liwag hammered down 15 points and 17 rebounds on a losing effort.
An error-plagued EAC, which turned the ball over 26 times this game, became the lone squad which has yet to win a game as it fell to a 0-3 hole.
San Beda and Lyceum are facing each other at press time for their respective second wins.