Red Lions draw first blood, near NCAA title

San Beda University flaunted its vaunted championship form as it blew out Letran College, 89-70, in Game 1 of their Season 101 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) men’s basketball tournament best-of-three finals series on Wednesday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Bryan Sajonia stepped up to lead the Red Lions to the masterful victory that put them on the brink of clinching their 24th title in the country’s oldest collegiate league.

A transferee from Far Eastern University, Sajonia fired 17 points while providing leadership in the final stretch, especially when San Beda lost its star rookie Janti Miller who was slapped with a disqualifying foul on Deo Cuajao for second motion in the final 6:16 of the game.

The hot-shooting Filipino-American guard stressed that he wasn’t happy with the call that put him in danger of missing the crucial Game 2 on Saturday at the same Cubao venue.

“Bulls**t, it’s a flop call but he (Cuajao) pushed me. I don’t know, it is what it is. We’ll see if we can play in the next game,” said Miller, who had 16 points and nine rebounds before he was sent to the dugout.

“My coach is going to appeal it. I think the way I went out was kinda like sus a little bit.”

Still, it was a solid game for the Red Lions, who displayed their killer instinct and pulled away in the third quarter after entering halftime holding a precarious 46-43 lead.

“We just have to take better shots and take care of the ball. That’s what we talked about during halftime so we just needed to simplify things and be more composed,” said head coach Yuri Escueta, who is seeking his second NCAA title as a head coach.

“It’s a good thing our half-court defense held up in the third quarter.

A layup from Sajonia with 9:27 remaining in the third quarter, sparked an 18-2 run and turned a slim 46-45 lead into a huge 64-47 advantage. Then, Nygel Gonzales scored on a layup in the final 9:27 to give San Beda its biggest lead of the game at 22 points, 70-48.

Gonzales backed Sajonia and Miller with 14 points while Jimmy Reyes chipped in eight points for the Red Lions, who were expecting an all-out war from a wounded Letran side in Game 2 of their title showdown.

“We have to adjust to our shortcomings. Our game plan for Game 1 didn’t work as we have to change it,” said Manalili, who led the Knights with 17 markers.

“I will go back to the videos and see where I went wrong.”