Lions get back at Knights, near Final 4

Games tomorrow (The Arena, San Juan)

12 noon – Mapua vs St. Benilde (jrs/srs)

4 p.m. – San Sebastian vs Perpetual (srs/jrs)

MANILA, Philippines - San Beda threw the defensive gauntlet on Letran and hammered out a vengeful 73-44 victory yesterday to put one foot into the Final Four of the 90th NCAA basketball tournament at The Arena in San Juan City.

The Red Lions suffocated the Knights with a methodical defense to run away with their 12th victory in 14 outings that guaranteed them of a playoff shot at the Last Four.

San Beda, winner of four straight championships and seven of the last eight, goes for an outright semis entry as it takes on Perpetual Help on Sept. 22.

“That’s our initial goal – to make the Final Four, then see what happens from there,” said San Beda coach Boyet Fernandez.

Defense made it happen for the Lions against the Knights.

San Beda held the Muralla-based school to just eight points in the first quarter and only 10 in the second to take the break with an imposing 37-18 advantage.

The Knights managed to put up a semblance of a fight in the third canto before being shackled down again by the Lions in the payoff period.

At the end, only one Letran player in Mark Cruz put in a double-digit output with 10.

It was sweet revenge for San Beda, which suffered a stinging 53-64 defeat to Letran in their first round meeting on Aug. 33. Nigerian behemoth Ola Adeogun served a suspension then.

Adeogun made up for his absence in the previous match, coming through with a solid double-double effort of 14 points and 10 boards.

“Playing a good game and helping my team win was my own little way to show my teammates how sorry I am for what I’ve done,” said Adeogun.

Arthur dela Cruz led his team with 17 points while Kyle Pascual chipped in 11.

Letran suffered an eighth defeat against six wins and will need to sweep its last four games to get a shot at the semis.