LYCEUM can call itself the king of Intramuros – atleast for now.
The red-hot Pirates zoomed to their fifth straight win in the NCAA Season 98 men’s basketball tournament following an amazing 82-75 comeback win over Muralla neighbor and defending champion Letran on Sunday at the Filoil Ecooil Center.
Down by as many as 19 points in the first half, the Pirates slowly chopped away in the lead before relying on Mac Guadana in the second half to complete another huge comeback and take a share of the lead with St. Benilde at 5-1.
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“Unang-una sinabi ko na stay coposed lang, wag ma-rattle, just follow the system and let’s make some adjustments, then nakahabol kami,” Lyceum coach Gilbert Malabanan said.
“Lagi kaming ganito e, laging lalamang ng first half ang mga kalaban, tapos saka sila pupukpok, pero sabi ko sa kanila sana hindi laging ganun. Kung kaya naman from the start pumukpok kaagad, gawin na rin nila. Pero siyempre habang tumatagal yung games pahirap na pahirap na to sa kailangan namin maging ready."
Fran Yu and Kurt Reyson presided over Letran's fiery start in the absence of suspended players Brent Paraiso and Louie Sangalang, hitting three treys apiece in the first period to push the Knights to a 29-13 lead.
But the Pirates eventually adjusted behind the hot shooting of Guadana, who hit one three pointer after another in the third period as they took a 61-60 lead with one quarter to go.
The match went tit for tat in the final period, with Lyceum breaking away only in the final two minutes as Guadana’ tied the game at 73, before John Barba drained the go-ahead three pointer with 1:53 remaining in the game.
Barba's four crucial free throws inside the final 90 seconds and the Pirates’ defense sent the Knights crashing to their second straight loss.
Guadana scored 15 of his 20 points in the second half to lead the Pirates fightback. Barba and Patrick Montano chipped in 12 apiece while Enzo Navarro orchestrated Lyceum’s offense beautifully once more with 11 points and seven assists.
The Pirates also got a huge boost on the defensive end from Enoch Valdez, who only scored five points but had 12 rebounds, six steals and a block to anchor their defense in the final 20 minutes.
Their balanced attack definitely had their coach smiling.
“Itong team ko is unpredictable. Di mo alam sino gagawa at sino ii-score sa amin, that’s the good thing about our team right now," Malabanan said,
"Di mo alam kung sino puputok. We’re also giving opportunities and sinasabi ko lang sa kanila na grab the opportunity pag nabigyan kayo ng playing time, make the most of it."
It was another heartbreak for the Knights who once again found themselves up big following a huge first quarter only to falter in the end. They also held a 17-point lead against rival San Beda last Friday only to drop a 76-68 loss.
Yu led the Knights with 18 points as Reyson added 16. But the two only combined for 12 points in the final two quarters as the Knights dropped to 3-3.
The scores:
Lyceum 82 - Guadana 20, Barba 12, Montano 12, Navarro 11, Larupay 9, Umali 7, Valdez 5, Culanay 3, Villegas 2, Penafiel 1, Aviles 0, Vinoya 0, Cunanan 0
Letran 75 - Yu 18, Reyeson 16, Caralipio 12, Santos 10, Monje 8, Olivario 6,Guarino 3, Miclat 2, Go 0, Bojorcelo 0, Bautista 0
Quarters: 13-29, 35-46, 61-60, 82-75
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