Despite battling a flu outbreak, the Letran Knights showed grit and heart to pull off a hard-earned 63-56 win over the previously unbeaten University of Perpetual Help Altas in the 101st NCAA men’s basketball tournament on Wednesday at the FilOil EcoOil Centre in San Juan.
The Knights leaned on clutch free throws down the stretch to snap the Altas’ four-game winning streak and secure their second consecutive victory after a shaky start to the season.
“We finally got our break — a back-to-back win,” said Letran head coach Allen Ricardo. “We’re looking forward to keeping this momentum in our next game.”
Jimboy Estrada powered the Knights with a season-high 23 points and eight rebounds, including 17 markers in the first half that helped Letran control the tempo early. Teammate Deo Cuajao also delivered a big lift, scoring 11 of his 16 points in the third quarter to stretch their lead to 50-35 heading into the final frame.
Despite playing under the weather, the Knights’ defense stood tall, limiting the Altas to just 10 points in each of the first two quarters and 20 at halftime. Letran led by as many as 18 in the third period before surviving a late rally from Perpetual.
Patrick Sleat paced the Altas with 16 points, but his efforts weren’t enough to prevent their first loss of the season, dropping them to a 4-1 record. The Knights, meanwhile, improved to 2-3.
In the juniors’ division, Lance Nitura starred for the University of Perpetual Help Junior Altas, finishing with 21 points — including the game-winning free throw in the final two minutes — to lift his team past the Letran Squires, 70-69.
The Junior Altas also came up with a defensive stand in the closing seconds, foiling five Squires attempts to seal the victory and tie Letran with identical 3-2 records.
