San Sebastian College-Recoletos survived a comeback scare from Colegio de San Juan de Letran, eking a 69-64 victory in the 15th FilOil EcoOil Preseason Cup, Thursday in San Juan City.
San Sebastian and Letran now have identical records in Group B both with three wins and three losses.
Coming from a timeout and the Knights down 64-67, King Caralipio missed an under-goal stab.
With no choice but to foul, the Knights fouled Vince Suico. He made both crucial free throws to give them a two-possession lead, 69-64 with seven seconds remaining. That denied Letran its second straight win.
“Yesterday kasi diba, talo kami sa D League, so lahat kami low morale. Sabi namin dapat go hard pa din this game para naman redeem natin yung sarili natin sa panalo. So yun, lahat naman ng bata naglaro ng maayos and nanalo kami,” said San Sebastian assistant coach Louie Bautista.
With under 3:30 left to play, Louie Sangalang was able to score inside the paint to tie it at 62.
Split free throws from Tristan Felebrico and Alex Desoyo, plus two free throws from Suico helped the Stags to bring their lead back to four, 66-62.
Sangalang was then able to cut it to two. Then Felebrico again split his free throws to bring San Sebastian by three, 67-64 with 50-seconds remaining.
Suico led the Stage with 13 points, shooting 10-of-12 from the charity stripe to go along with two rebounds.
Ichie Altamirano had a well-rounded performance with 12 markers, five boards, and seven assists. Meanwhile, Felebrico finished with a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds.
For the Knights, Louie Sangalang scored 17 points with six rebounds, an assist, and two blocks. Joining him is Kurt Reyson with 12 markers, five boards, and three dimes.
San Sebastian will look to end the elimination with a win against Jose Rizal University on Saturday at 3:00 PM. Letran, on the other hand, will be facing De La Salle University the game after at 5:00 PM.
The Scores:
San Sebastian 69 –– Suico 13, Altamirano 12, Felebrico 11, Sumoda 10, Desoyo 8, Cosari 4, Janao 3, Calahat 2, Escobido 2, Yambing 2, Una 2, Shanoda 0, Barroga 0, Concha 0, Cruz 0.
Letran 64 — Sangalang 17, Reyson 12, Yu 9, Guarino 8, Paraiso 8, Ariar 4, Caralipio 2, Bataller 2, Olivario 2, Tolentino 0, Go 0, Lantaya 0.
Quarterscores: 21-23, 43-38, 55-54, 69-64.
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The entire 2022 Filoil Ecooil Preseason Cup will stream LIVE on Smart Sports Facebook page
