Key losses: Rhenz Abando, Jeo Ambohot, Christian Fajarito, Allen Mina
Key holdovers: Fran Yu, Louie Sangalang, Tommy Olivario, Pao Javillonar, Brent Paraiso
Season 97 record: 9-0 (elimination round); Champion
It will be a tough road ahead for defending back-to-back champion Colegio de San Juan de Letran as it opens its three-peat bid in the upcoming NCAA Season 98 men's basketball tournament.
The Knights lost two huge pieces from their Season 97 championship run in Rhenz Abando and Jeo Ambohot, who have both moved onto the professional ranks.
Abando, the Season 97 MVP and Rookie of the Year, is off for greener pastures in the Korean Basketball League (KBL) while Ambohot, the Finals MVP and a member of the Mythical Five, has begun his PBA career.
Also turning pro were veterans Allen Mina and Christian Fajarito.
Team captain Fran Yu admitted that copping a third crown in a row will be no walk in the park for the Knights.
"Mahirap talaga, mahirap 'to kasi ang daming nawala tsaka 'yung mga nawala, malaki talaga 'yung iniwan nilang kumbaga na butas," Yu told GMA News Online in an interview.
"Pero naniniwala naman ako sa mga teammates ko and sa coaches, lahat kami gigil din talaga na makuha 'yon (three-peat championship)."
Despite the exit of some big guns, there is still plenty of depth in the Letran lineup.
With the graduating 5-foot-9 guard Yu steering the ship, other veterans like Brent Paraiso, Louie Sangalang, Tommy Olivario, Pao Javillonar, and King Caralipio are expected to take larger roles for the team.
Sangalang averaged 8.0 points on an NCAA-best 62-percent field goal shooting clip in the Season 97 elimination round while playing only 16 minutes per game. Paraiso, meanwhile, posted averages of 7.8 points per game on a 37.1-percent clip from beyond the arc, one of the best marks in the league.
They will also hope to see some impact coming from young cagers Kyle Tolentino and incoming rookie Kobe Monje, who has shown glimpses of what he can bring to the Knights during their preseason ventures.
Also bolstering Letran are Andrey Guarino, Kint Ariar, Jimly Lantaya, and Kurt Reyson.
Decorated coach Bonnie Tan will still be calling the shots as Letran aims for the rare feat.
"Gagawin namin 'yung best namin para makuha 'yung three-peat," stressed Yu.
—JMB, GMA News
