Reprieve for JL, rebound for Bombers

MANILA, Philippines — Jose Rizal U got some doses of redemption yesterday with a win over Mapua and a reprieve for star guard JL delos Santos from the Commissioner’s Office.

The Bombers needed a massive second-quarter turnaround in erasing an 11-point opening deficit and drawing momentum en route to a 70-61 win over the Cardinals at the Filoil EcoOil Arena.

Before the game came to an end, league commissioner Tonichi Pujante made a ruling in favor of Delos Santos with regards to a disqualification foul drawn in their 93-85 overtime loss to St. Benilde Friday.

“It was ascertained that the elbow of JRU’s JL Delos Santos did not hit CSB’s Mark Sangco. As such, it did not warrant an unsportsmanlike foul,” said Pujante in a media statement. “In this regard, he should have not been thrown out, thus there is no one-game suspension.

“As for the three referees, they are suspended from Sept. 30 to Oct. 14, 2023 for failure to execute sound judgment, inefficient use of Instant Replay System (IRS) review, as well as for ceasing to assess themselves as game officials,” he added.

Spared from a suspension, Delos Santos took advantage and dropped six points, six assists and five rebounds as JRU improved to 2-1.

Earlier, Emilio Aguinaldo College pulled the rug from under Letran, 75-65, to stay perfect in two starts while holding the reigning three-peat titlist winless in three outings.

In the third game, San Beda drubbed St. Benilde, 83-77.