San Beda University head coach Yuri Escueta, who returned from a one-game suspension, was welcomed back by the Red Lions with a gutsy 62-60 comeback win against Perpetual on Tuesday in NCAA Season 99.
But the sophomore coach had more than one reason to be pleased.
Prior to the game, San Beda was actually the last team in terms of bench points with their second unit averaging 23.33 in six games played. That, however, did not matter in this one as the Red Lions' bench accounted for 31 points against the ALTAs, half of the team's total scoring output in the game.
Leading the second unit was Filipino-Canadian rookie Jomel Puno, who tallied a team-high 12 points capped by their last five points, to go with 17 rebounds, one assist, and one block. Nygel Gonzales and Emman Tagle also came off the bench roaring, producing eight markers apiece.
"I was telling the players sa dugout after the game na wins like this shows that sometimes your starters, even your best players, will struggle," Escueta said.
"But what made me happy or satisfied in the game is seeing our bench points equal with our starting points with Jomel, Nygel, and even Emman Tagle stepping up."
San Beda found themselves down by as much as 14 points as usual suspects Jacob Cortez and Peter Alfaro struggled to connect from the field. But they turned things around in the second half, limiting the ALTAs to just 21 points compared to their 39-point halftime output.
Escueta reiterated that their team is more than just Cortez, who is the squad's leading performer with 17.67 points, 4.0 rebounds, 2.83 assists, 1.67 steals, and 0.33 blocks.
"Last kami sa bench points eh so masaya ako na na-balance namin ‘yung starters at bench points," he added.
"We don’t rely on our starters, gusto namin balance. Hindi naman ‘to si Jacob lang, hindi naman ‘to starters lang."
("We're last in bench points so I'm happy that we were able to balance starters and bench points... We don't rely on our starters, we want balance. This team is not just Jacob, or not just the starters.")
—JMB, GMA Integrated News
