By: Ohmer Bautista
The Lyceum of the Philippines University Pirates are undoubtedly one of the best collegiate teams in the country, a fact that has been attributed to their deep roster comprised of capable players who do not shy away from the big stage.
In their Final Four tiff against the upstart Letran Knights, the Pirates zoomed to a sizable lead early, but later squandered after a Knights rally capped by a Koy Galvelo triple, 55-56, early in the third.
That, however, was the last time Letran saw daylight, as Lyceum’s depth proved to be the game-changer.
With the Knights up by one, the Pirates opened the flood gates after detonating a 26-8 explosion.
But it was not the likes of CJ Perez nor the Marcelino Twins who sparked the run – the blitz was powered by Spencer Pretta, Jeff Santos, and Niño Ibañez.
“Jeff, Spencer, and Niño, they really stepped big for us,” Pirates head coach Topex Robinson beamed.
“They rarely get the opportunity but once they have the opportunity, talagang they take advantage of it.”
Pretta had a career-high 15 points, while Santos and Ibanez netted ratings of plus-14 and plus-12, respectively.
Abridging their momentum from the third canto, the trio continued to propel LPU’s onslaught in the penultimate quarter, as they waxed hot from the field, ballooning the lead to as high as 37.
But out of all the nails that the Pirates hammered into the Knights’ coffin, nothing was more heart-wrenching than the back-to-back triples Pretta uncorked with 6:52 left in the game.
“Noong fourth quarter, medyo lamang na kami pero siyempre kapag pinasok ka ni coach, ayaw mo naman maging soft ‘yung laro mo,” Pretta shared.
“Credit rin sa mga teammates ko, sa mga point guard, sila Niño, hinahanap nila ako.”
For his part, coach Robinson knows full well that no matter how slim the opportunity is, as long as his players have the chance to seize the moment, they will be ready for it.
“They’re always ready. They know the opportunity. They will always take care of that opportunity and make sure that the trust na binibigay sa kanila, susuklian nila,” shared the Lyceum bench tactician.
“I just have so much love and respect for these players.”
