Knights eye piece of lead vs Chiefs

Manila, Philippines - Letran shoots for a share of the lead with San Sebastian as it takes on a dangerous Arellano U today even as Emilio Aguinaldo and Lyceum gun for a second win in the 87th NCAA basketball tournament at The Arena in San Juan City.

The Muralla-based cagers will take on the Chiefs, who split their two outings on a victory over the Jose Rizal Bombers and a loss to the Emilio Aguinaldo Generals at 2 p.m. aiming for no less than a victory that would put them alongside the Stags, who are unbeaten in three assignments.

Brandishing the killer instinct drawn from their unrelenting, highly physical full-court trapping defense, the Knights pulled off a pair of wins over the Mapua Cardinals, 76-65, last July 2 and the Perpetual Help Altas, 74-43, to join the San Beda Lions, the reigning champions, at second place on 2-0 (win-loss) slate.

Arellano U, for its part, lost to EAC despite leading by double digits, 73-81, before bouncing back strong with a 79-75 humbling of Jose Rizal to get back into the Final Four radar and get the attention of some coach including Letran’s Louie Alas.

“We are expecting a very tight game because both teams are coming off big wins,” said Alas, who has steered the school to titles in 1998, 2003 and 2005.

Alas said they’ll be relying on their defense again in containing, if not stopping completely, Arellano’s wingmen.

“If we could contain their perimeter players and maybe limit them to less than 60 points, we’ll have a chance of winning against them (Arellano U),” said Alas.

Lyceum, which is currently inside the magic four with a 2-1 record, for its part, clashes with EAC, which is tied at fifth with Arellano U on a 1-1 card, in the final game at 4 p.m.