MANILA, Philippines – Dethroned champion Colegio de San Juan de Letran ended the NCAA Season 92 tournament on a winning note, defeating Emilio Aguinaldo College (EAC) in overtime, 93-87, on Thursday at the Arena in San Juan.
The Knights squandered an 11-point lead in the final two minutes of regulation, allowed the Generals to score five points in the last 10 seconds, but recovered in the extra period to secure the victory.
A year after winning the championship, Letran ended its campaign with a 9-9 win-loss record, tying Jose Rizal University for fifth and sixth places in the league standings.
"Nage-enjoy, pero nakalimutan ata tapusin ang laro," Letran coach Jeff Napa said of his players. "Sinabi ko lang sa kanila na masyadong nage-enjoy, nakalimutan tapusin ang laro. So at least, natapos naman, kahit nage-enjoy sila, natapos ng maayos ang laro."
The Knights led, 77-66, with two minutes to go after a lay-up by Jom Sollano, and were still on top, 82-77, with just 11.9 seconds left to play, thanks to two clutch free throws by Rey Nambatac.
But the Generals staged a furious comeback in the final 10 seconds to erase the lead and send the game to overtime. Jorem Morada made the first of two free throws before missing the second, only for Sidney Onwubere to sneak in for the putback. Morada then came through with a steal of the inbound pass and assisted on Hamadou Laminou's game-tying basket with just eight-tenths of a second left to play.
What a sequence for EAC!#NCAASeason92 pic.twitter.com/hkLEjYwdul
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The Knights recovered in the extra period, however, with JP Calvo scoring seven of his 11 points in the extra five minutes while the Generals faded down the stretch. Indeed, EAC only mustered five points in overtime, with Francis Munsayac's three-pointer at the 1:45 mark making it a one-possession game, 87-89.
Munsayac, however, bricked a potential go-ahead three-pointer with after Laminou rejected a lay-up by Calvo, and the Generals would not threaten from that point on.
Sollano finished the game with a double-double of 21 points and 12 rebounds, while Nambatac had 15 points and six boards. Calvo added seven assists to his statline, and Felix Apreku, in his final game for Letran, had eight points and 10 rebounds.
"Sa season as a whole, frustrated ako," said Napa, who took over as head coach from Aldin Ayo. "Pero 'yung frustration ko ngayon, gagamitin ko para sa next year. At least, kung sino man ang magiging player ko next year will become ready and prepared."
Laminou had 23 points and 18 rebounds, while Onwubere had 23 points, eight boards, and three assists for the Generals.
Though their season ended in a loss, it was still a much-improved campaign for the Generals, who finished with a 6-12 win-loss record – a four-win improvement from last year's sorry campaign.
The scores:
Letran (93) - Sollano 21, Nambatac 15, Quinto 12, Balanza 11, Calvo 11, Apreku 8, Bernabe 5, Ambohot 4, Balagasay 4, Dela Pena 2, Luib 0, Pambid 0, Sario 0, Ular 0, Vacaro 0.
EAC (87) - Laminou 23, Onwubere 23, Munsayac 12, King 9, Serrano 6, Morada 5, Guzman 3, Pascua 3, Diego 2, Neri 1, Aguas 0, Corilla 0, Estacio 0, General 0, Mendoza 0.
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