Letran Knights star Jerrick Balanza delivered his biggest game so far for his team, scoring 14 points on 4-of-9 shooting from the field to propel the Intramuros-based squad to their fourth consecutive victory of the NCAA Season 94.
“Sa ‘kin naman ano eh, basta ako ginagawa ko lang ‘yung dapat kong gawin as a leader,” Balanza said. “So ayun nga, maganda ‘yung nangyari, maganda ‘yung kinalabasan,” the former Letran Squire added. His numbers may not be that big, but what matters is when he delivered these points.
The latter got injured with 8.9 seconds remaining in the second quarter as he collided with Arellano’s Adrian Alban. However, Balanza shrugged it off and made his impact in the following quarter; scoring eight points in the Knights' crucial 17-5 rally in the third.
“Sinabihan ako nila coach na isa ako sa mga leaders so kahit may masakit sa akin, hindi ko na ininda,” he said. “Para sa team naman ‘yun, buti maganda ‘yung kinalabasan,” he added. Balanza’s scoring numbers may be down for this season, but as long as Letran is racking up the victories, it’s all good for the spitfire guard.
“Iba kasi ‘yung last season sa ngayong season sa akin. Sa akin, ang mentality ko, okay lang na ganyan laro ko basta nananalo ‘yung team ko. Hindi ko iniisip ‘yung stats ko eh, basta manalo ‘yung team ko,” he said.