Colegio de San Juan de Letran preyed on host Emilio Aguinaldo College to book another lopsided victory, 116-82, and remain undefeated in the NCAA Season 98 juniors basketball tournament on Monday at the EAC Gym.
Andy Gemao dropped a team-high 26 points to lead the Squires alongside his eight rebounds and one steal while George Diamante chipped in 16 markers and nine boards as Letran improved to 3-0 in the team standings.
Daniel Padilla was also a revelation for Letran, chiming in with 13 points, five dimes, and two steals in 14 minutes of action.
EAC, on the other hand, sank to a winless 0-3 card after already falling to Jose Rizal University and Mapua University in its previous games.
Letran, who previously defeated defending champion San Beda University, picked up where it left off after pouring in 32 huge points in the second quarter against the Brigadiers to take a 54-28 halftime lead.
With the leadership of Lance Dungo and Keith Esusan, EAC was able to keep its offense going but stopping the Squires proved challenging as Letran flaunted its depth with other key players like Sebastian Reyes, Nur Datumalim, and June Silorio joining in on the shooting party.
All but one of the 15 players that Letran fielded scored at least two points.
Letran was coming off a 94-68 triumph over the Red Cubs as well as a 91-86 victory over San Sebastian College-Recoletos.
Meanwhile, San Beda bounced back from their own loss to Letran after a 93-81 win over San Sebastian later in the day to improve to 2-1 while the Staglets dropped to a 1-2 slate.
It was a two-point game, 65-63, at the end of the third period before San Beda outscored San Sebastian, 28-18, in the fourth quarter to pick up the victory.
Nicko Lorenzo scored a game-high 21 points alongside five rebounds and one assists while Andrei Dungo also starred for the Red Cubs with a double-double outing of 19 points, 16 rebounds, four assists, and three blocks.
Another Red Cub had a double-double performance as Christopher Hubilla dropped 15 markers and 13 boards in the win.
San Beda will next face Mapua on Wednesday at 7:30 a.m. while San Sebastian will look to recover on the same day against EAC at 9:30 a.m.
The scores:
First game
Letran 116 - Gemao 26, Diamante 16, Padilla 13, Reyes 12, Datumalim 9, Silorio 7, Moreno 6, Navarro 6, Anabo 5, Cruz 5, Baliling 3, Alforque 3, Hugo 3, Manalili 2, Paguio 0.
EAC 82 - Dungo 15, Esusan 13, Villanueva 10, Dispo 8, Bautista 7, Mariquit 6, Falsado 6, Bonafe 6, Brazil 5, Bailon 2, Tecson 1, Castillo 1, Tenorio 0, Romero 0.
Quarters: 22-15, 54-28, 80-58, 116-82.
Second game
San Beda 93 - Lorenzo 21, Dungo 19, Lopez 16, Hubilla 15, Reyes 7, Lecciones 7, Wagan 4, Canete 2, Sollano 2, Ronquillo 0, Jomalesa 0.
San Sebastian 81 - Danag 16, Jardinico 15, Balbao 13, Porcadas 12, Geronimo 11, Parba 5, Datario 3, De Leon 2, Bularin 2, Reyes 2, Hernandez 0, Rojas 0.
Quarters: 25-16, 45-44, 65-63, 93-81.
—JMB, GMA Integrated News
