Letran College's three-peat quest got off to a rousing start as it fashioned out a 101-97 overtime win over Jose Rizal University Wednesday, 14 September in Season 98 National Collegiate Athletic Association basketball tournament yesterday at the Filoil EcoOil Centre in San Juan.
Down 97-96 with 46.5 seconds on the clock in extra period, Fran Yu and Kobe Monje joined hands in a telling 5-0 salvo that pulled the bid on the Heavy Bombers' bid.
Before Yu and Monje teamed up, it was Kurt Reyson who made things happen for Letran.
With JRU holding an 89-86 lead with 9.1 ticks remaining in regulation, Reyson made a steal and sank a triple to level the count even with five seconds left as the Bombers could not equalize.
"Reason played a good game. I am speechless on what the kid did," said head coach Bonnie Tan amid the exodus of Letran main men Rhenz Abando and Jeo Ambohot to the pros.
Reyson wound up with a game-high 31 points from 9-of-14 shooting.
"He (Reyson) has to step up now because he has been overshadowed by the veterans back then," Tan added.
The win was the Knights' first while the defeat was the Bombers' second straight stretching back to Saturday's inaugurals.
Letran scored 27 points from JRU's 13 turnovers in the game.
Still, Tan knew beforehand that the Heavy Bombers would pose serious challenge in the Knights debut.
"We know JRU will be one of the fastest teams here in the NCAA. We told the boys that we have to outsmart them."
Aside from Reyson's hefty contribution, King Caralipio also inflicted damage by posting a double-double of 14 points and 11 rebounds.
Brent Paraiso likewise had his moments, sinking 13 and hauling down three boards.
John Amores led with 19 points and six rebounds for JRU.
The Scores:
LETRAN (101) — Reyson 31, Caralipio 14, Paraiso 13, Yu 12, Sangalang 9, Monje 9, Santos 6, Olivario 3, Go 2, Miclat 2, Ariar 0, Guarino 0.
JRU (97) — Amores 19, Miranda 18, Celis 14, Dela Rosa 14, Guiab 10, Dionisio 7, Arenal 7, Medina 5, Sy 3, Delos Santos 0, Abaoag 0.
QUARTERS: 19-27, 49-41, 74-71, 89-89, 101-97
