Letran Knights was edged in a fierce rivalry against the San Beda Red Lions. Photo Courtesy: Augusto Ubrano II.
After the nail-biter that was the Knights versus Altas, the Colegio de San Juan de Letran Knights was edged in a fierce rivalry against the San Beda Red Lions, yesterday, October 1 at the FilOil EcoOil Centre in San Juan City.
Another nip-and-tuck affair was spearheaded by the Kapampangan big, Kevin Santos, who tallied 18 points, nine boards, three dimes, and three swats. He was backstopped by Jimboy Estrada and Deo Cuajao who had 16 and 12, respectively.
The Knights made their presence felt instantly in the first quarter, draining quick triples after the opening tip courtesy of Kevin Santos and Nath Montecillo. The squad would hold on to a two-point cushion until the 2:00 mark where the Red Lions’ James Payosing executed in the driving lane to tie the game. The alpha male, Yukien Andrada, swished a trifecta to extend the lead of the pride in the first canto, 16-20.
A dry spell was seemingly casted on both squads during the second frame. But, the tides quickly shifted after the enigmatic showdown of the giants as Kevin Santos and Jomel Puno went toe-to-toe, trading a posterize slam dunk and well-timed blocks. Puno’s frontcourt agility was clearly the leverage of SBU in this outing.
Noticing an evenly matched paint, it was time for Etrada and Cuajao to level up. Both known for their signature shots in the perimeter and the rainbow county, the dynamic backcourt pair combined for 14 markers to claim the lead, 32-30, at the end of first half.
Both teams' defensive prowess were at full display during the 3rd quarter as the White and Red shirts exchanged defensive highlights to the crowd’s delight. San Beda would start to heat up with a three from Tagle to tie the game at 37-all, the lead would not last however as Santos would come with a highlight dunk of his own starting on an alley oop pass from Estrada, 39-37.
The Intramuros-based squad pushed the pace with Santos and Cuajao leading the charge, witnessing an onslaught from all cylinders. San Beda, on the other hand, struggled to deliver points giving up a 10-point gap — the largest of the game.
Puno maintained his aggressive motion in the endgame, chipping away the Letran lead. Letran’s offensive drought led them to remain scoreless two minutes into the fourth, converting zero out of 10 shot attempts. The Red Lions capitalized on the foul line as Nunag fouled-out of the game in the final six minutes of the game. On his exit he tallied 10 boards along with seven markers for the team.
The final moments of the game intensified as star players, Puno and Estrada, exchanged clutch baskets to keep the difference by a point. San Beda’s rookie, Brian Sajonia, was given the green light to seal the deal for the Red Lions with a long-ranged dagger, 66-64. This proved too much for the Knights to handle, as Cuajao was left unable to convert his go ahead basket.
The Fil-Canadian forward, Jomel Puno posted a career-high of 22 points, 10 rebounds, and 2 assists in this breakout game. Celzo, Andrada, and Sajonia chipped eight markers apiece.
The Letran Knights are set to face the LPU Pirates in their last game of the first round at the same venue on October 5, 2024, Saturday.
Quarterscores: 16-20, 32-30, 51-49, 64-66.
The scores:
Letran (64) – Santos 18, Estrada 16, Cuajao 12, Nunag 7, Montecillo 5, Miller 4, Monje 2, Baliling 0, Dimaano 0, Go 0, Jumao-As 0.
San Beda (66) – Puno 22, Celzo 8, Andrada 8, Sajonia 8, Songcuya 8, Payosing 6, Estacio 3, Tagle 3, Calimag 0, Gonzales 0, Royo 0, Tagala 0.