FIVE EXTRA MINUTES were all the San Beda Red Lions needed to seize a 74-65 win over the Colegio de San Juan de Letran (CSJL) Knights in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Season 102 seniors’ basketball tournament at the Playtime EcoOil Centre last October 5.
It was another chapter in one of the Grand Old League’s most storied rivalries, and the Red Lions wrote the ending. Aldous Torculas led the defending champions with 18 points.
Letran set the game’s tempo on its early terms. The Knights took the opening frame, 17-11, and a basket to start the second quarter stretched the lead to 19-11, the biggest advantage either team held until overtime. That was the high point of their night.
The Mendiola-based squad dug in from there, outscoring Letran 23-15 for the rest of the quarter to draw level at 34-34 at the break. Head Coach Yuri Escueta credited the team for staying true to the habits built in the preseason. “I think we were able to do that defensively,” he said.
Torculas said the atmosphere was hard to ignore. “I could feel na ‘yung floor gumagalaw,” he said. “[I’m] very happy and very honored na makapaglaro sa ganitong time and place.”
San Beda edged ahead in the third quarter, to lead 50-45 heading into the fourth. The Red Lions controlled the boards, finishing with a 52-38 edge, including 14 offensive rebounds that led to 11 second-chance points to Letran’s five. Letran’s offense never found its range from deep, going 4-of-22 from three.
Rookie Andrei Ugaddan, who guarded Letran’s best player, added 8 points and 10 rebounds, five of them offensive. “Laban ‘yung bata,” Coach Yuri said, praising the rookie for accepting the challenge.
To its credit, Letran kept the pressure on. The Knights forced 23 San Beda turnovers, finishing with 16 steals, 17 points off turnovers and 18 fastbreak points. In the fourth, the Knights outscored San Beda, 16-11.
Members of the San Beda Red Army were then seen behind the Letran basket spinning giant red-and-black spiral boards whenever the Knights shoot free.
In the dying seconds before the fourth-quarter buzzer sounded, with the Knights holding a three-point advantage, Torculas hit a three-pointer splash to force the game into overtime, erasing the three-point gap to tie the game at 61-61. It was the ninth deadlock of the night, with eight lead changes.
“Wino-work on ko ‘yung shots na gagawin ko sa game,” Torculas shared. “Very fortunate na sakin napunta ‘yung bola,”.
After that, only one team showed up. The Red Lions scored 11 of the first 12 points of overtime to lead 72-62, the biggest lead of the night. Letran scored four points in the entire extra period, against San Beda’s 13.
The free-throw line made the gap. San Beda made 24 of 31, while Letran made 11 of 27, leaving 16 points at the line in a game decided by nine. The Knights outscored the Red Lions in the paint, 36-22, and had little to show for it.
Daniel Marcelo added 10 points, while Jimuel Reyes, Lawrence Hawkins and Dominic Sarigumba each contributed seven. San Beda’s bench produced 36 points.
For Coach Yuri, the 23 turnovers were the main concern. “We struggled from many turnovers, and it’s something we have to improve on,” he said, adding that the team will keep improving little by little as the games go by.
Coach Yuri also mentioned how San Beda does not keep a permanent “King Lion.” He further noted that whoever steps up in a given game gets the title with the next game determining who gets to keep the title.
Letran brought the steals, the fastbreaks, and the rally. San Beda brought the ending. In this rivalry, only one of those goes in the standings.
The Men in Red now turn their attention to the second game of the crossover eliminations against the University of Perpetual Help System DALTA (UPHSD) Altas today, October 8, at the Playtime FilOil Centre.
Quarter Scores: 11-17, 34-34, 50-45, 61-61, 74-65
San Beda 74 – Torculas 18, Marcelo 10, Ugaddan 8, Reyes 7, Hawkins 7, Sarigumba 7, Bonzalida 5, Puno 4, Estacio 2, Etulle 2, Calimag 2, Efron 2
Letran 65 – Estrada 17, Manalili 13, Santos 10, Walker 8, Cargo 5, Buensalida 5, Hugo 4, Gammad 2, Reyes 1, Montecillo 0