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MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) – Redemption is now within reach for the Letran Knights as they barged into the finals for the second straight year after they trumped third-seeded San Sebastian Golden Stags, 85-58, Thursday at the Mall of Asia Arena.
The Knights began running away with the game early in the third period after San Sebastian coach Topex Robinson was slapped with a technical foul. This enabled Letran to launch a 13-3 blast that transformed a slim 37-31 margin to a 50-34 bubble.
Triples by Kent Racal and John Tambeling pushed the lead up to 19, 57-38, before the Stags were able to bring it down to 57-44 entering the final period.
Letran rookie Rey Nambatac stole the show in the fourth quarter after hitting one triple after another that effectively closed the doors on San Sebastian. The Stags kept trying to bounce back but ended up firing blanks, as the Knights kept pounding them to erect their biggest margin, 83-55, seconds away from the final buzzer.
Big man Raymond Almazan dominated the contest with a near triple-double of 19 points, 23 rebounds, and 9 blocks while Nambatac scored all of his 13 points in the 4th period.
“Before I leave, I want to be a champion. I don’t mind the individual awards because it won’t matter if we’re not going to be the champions,” said the 3rd overall pick in this year’s PBA draft.
CJ Perez carried the fight for San Sebastian with 11 points, 8 rebounds, and 5 assists but was hardly a factor in the first quarter where he and fellow rookie Jamil Ortuoste both went scoreless.
Letran shall will arrange a best-of-3 finals showdown with the winner of the San Beda-Perpetual Help series. – Rappler.com/Reports from Levi Verora
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