By: Aulyn Gwen Bergado
The Letran Squires as they celebrate their hard fought victory with Assoc. Prof. Awi, Principal of Letran's High School Dept. Photo courtesy of the Letran-Manila Senior High School.
A drought has ended. History is made.
Letran Squires reigned supreme in the NCAA Season 98 Juniors Basketball as they outplayed La Salle Green Hills Greenies, eking out a 77-61 victory earlier today at San Andres Complex in Manila.
The Coach Allen Ricardo-led Squires were able to prove that heart is always mightier than the height as they edged the Greenies in the first game with 85-81 tally.
For the first time since 1983, Letran were able to achieve a double championship with this triumph, together with the championship crown from the seniors basketball squad, Knights.
Andy Gemao, who is also hailed as the Finals MVP, cashed in 14 markers on top of five rebounds, two assists, two steals and a block.
Jovel Baliling also cashed in 19 points alongside Jonathan Manalili and June Silorio who churned out 16 and 12, respectively.
The Squires heavily relied on their patented system inside the court as they masterfully hacked out a 17-point lead over the Greenies in the final frame of the championship series.
After staying close with a 28-26 tally on the second canto, the Knights slowly pulled away with the combined efforts behind Manalili and Silorio.
From there, the Squires showed that they just wanted to enjoy the game and just showed their grit in etching history.
The Greenies were paced by league MVP Luis Pablo who tallied 20 points, while being backed up by Rod Alian and Seven Gagate who teamed up for 24 points.