LETRAN SQUIRES PUNCH FINALS TICKET

By: Miguel Caramoan

Strong Group-backed Colegio de San Juan de Letran secured a spot in the NCAA Season 101 Juniors Basketball Finals after a 77-68 victory over Emilio Aguinaldo College–Immaculate Conception Academy in their decisive semifinal on Sunday at the SMART Araneta Coliseum.

The Squires, who finished 7-6 in Group B during the elimination round as the No. 2 seed, leaned on the stellar performance of Nathan Egea, the UAAP Season 86 Boys’ Basketball Rookie of the Year, who posted 21 points and 10 rebounds.

Mico Pascual and Justin Cargo added 17 and 15 points, respectively, to help the Squires fend off the top-seeded Brigadiers, who had forced a deciding Game 3 after winning the second semifinal clash, 75-70.

Letran’s path to the finals has been a test of resilience.

The Squires needed two games to oust defending champion Perpetual Junior Altas in the quarterfinals—dropping Game 1, 69-74, before bouncing back with a 70-65 win in the do-or-die match.

In the semifinals, Letran struck first with a narrow 77-76 win over EAC-ICA, but the Brigadiers forced a rubber match, setting the stage for Sunday’s series-clinching victory.

With this win, Letran sets up a best-of-three Finals series against Arellano starting Wednesday at the Big Dome, aiming to cap a challenging season with the championship.