Age-Old Rivalry: San Beda Vs. Letran

Pride and history will be at stake when defending champion San Beda and surprise finalist Letran begin their best-of-three championship series for the 88th National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) men’s basketball crown on Thursday at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.

Considered the league’s most successful teams with 16 titles each, the Red Lions and the Knights would go for that tiebreaker while renewing an age-old rivalry dating back in the 1950s, when Letran’s legendary Murder Inc., composed of Larry Mumar, Nilo Verona and the Fajardo brothers Gabby and Philip, defeated the Caloy Loyzaga-led San Beda side in the finals.

This will be the third time San Beda and Letran will face off in the finals—the second was in 2007, when the Red Lions won their second straight crown.

History looks to be on the side of San Beda, the eliminations topnotcher that won the title seven times since the league used the Final Four format in 1998.

The Mendiola-based squad also enjoys a 16-11 head-to-head advantage over the Knights since 2001, and has swept this season’s host in the double-round eliminations.

But Red Lions Team Manager Jude Roque said their two victories over the Knights this season doesn’t matter anymore. “They are a different team now and it showed during our game in the second round,” he said.

San Beda scored an easy 65-43 rout of Letran in the first round but had a tough time pulling off a 68-62 win in the second round after the Knights gained additional ceiling with the return of 6-foot-7 Raymond Almazan.

Almazan failed to play most of the season after suffering from dengue and only returned in the latter half of the second round.

“[Almazan’s return] is a big lift for Letran. They played well against us in the second round and it was a tight game from the start,” said Roque. “They [Knights] are so much better now.”

Roque added that Letran’s starting unit of Almazan, Kevin Alas, Mark Cruz, Jam Cortes and Kevin Racal also pose matchup problems for the Red Lions.

Letran Assistant Coach Justino Pinat, however, countered that San Beda has the deeper bench.

“We gained additional ceiling with Almazan’s return. We’re not going to make any adjustment since he played two games in the second round. What our problem is San Beda’s deep bench and we have to limit their fast breaks,” said Pinat

San Beda is eyeing a second “three-peat” in seven years, but Roque admitted they are wary against a Letran side that is on a roller-coaster ride this season. The Knights spent most of the season at No. 8 but managed to turn things around to claim the third seeding in the Final Four.

source: Business Mirror