2 August 2018
By Maxine Louise Lagman
Manila, Philippines – The Letran crowd erupted from their seats as the Knights defended their home court from visiting College of St. Benilde in the NCAA Season 94 senior’s basketball tournament, 64-60, Thursday at the Letran Gym in Intramuros.
The Blazers took a valiant stand against the Knights, as they led the game in the first half with six points, 31-25, to end the second quarter.
However, the Knights slowly found their momentum in the third, cutting the deficit to one, 43-44, going into the fourth salvo.
Finally showing a tough defense on court, Letran held the Blazers in the final four minutes of the game to leave St. Benilde bleeding and scoreless.
A crucial fade-away shot by Bong Quinto gave the Knights a two-point advantage, 62-60, in the final minute of the match, followed by two freebies from Jerrick Balanza, which eventually sealed their win.
CSB could have turned the game around. Unique Naboa attempted a triple, but missed and they had committed several errors that missed their chance for a possible overtime.
Quinto led Letran with 17 points, while Larry Muyang chipped in 10 points. Chris Fajarito added another 10 points for the win, along with 11 rebounds.
Meanwhile, Yankie Haruna led St. Benilde with 13 points and Clement Leutcheu had 10 markers, seven boards and five assists.
The Scores:
Letran (64) – Quinto 17, Muyang 10, Fajarito 10, Batiller 8, Calvo 6, Yu 4, Balanza 2, Ambohot 2, Taladua 2, Mandreza 2, Celis 1, Balagasay 0, Agbong 0
CSB (60) – Haruna 13, Leutcheu 10, Gutang 8, Dixon 8, Naboa 5, Velasco 5, Young 4, Domingo 3, Pasturan 2, Carlos 2
Quarter scores: 13-17, 25-31, 43-44, 64-60
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