Dolphins, Knights stretch win runs

Letran and Philippine Christian U pulled off victories in varying fashions yesterday to become the only unscathed teams in the 81st NCAA men’s basketball championships.

The Knights maintained a tough defense throughout to turn back the St. Benilde Blazers, 65-45, while the Dolphins hurdled their best acid test by whipping the Mapua Cardinals, 57-49 at the Astrodome.

The Knights have tied their best start in league history accomplished first in 1998 when they won the crown while gaining a share of the lead with the Dolphins with a 5-0 record each.

So unforgiving was the defense put up by the Knights, they held the Blazers to 20 second-half points, and only nine in the third period.

But this could not be said of the Dolphins who had to fight off a big but late bid by the Cardinals before claiming the win.

The Dolphins held the Cardinals to only four points in the last six minutes, while unloading 13 points in the same stretch to frustrate the Cards, with reigning MVP Gabby Espinas again getting the job done.

Espinas scored four points in a 7-0 run that wiped out a 44-45 deficit, before Robert Sanz sealed the outcome of the contest for the Dolphins with a three-point basket, 55-49 after the Cardinals threatened for the last time at 49-52 with 1:50 left in the game.

On the other hand, Letran used a ferocious run in the second half to break loose from a see-sawing contest and demoralize the Blazers.

Playmaker JP Alcaraz ignited a game-deciding 24-8 blitzkrieg bridging the third and fourth periods, carrying the Knights out of a close 35-31 lead and take a commanding 59-39 advantage Letran never relinquished.

"It’s definitely a good start for us, but it doesn’t mean anything if we can’t win the championship," said Letran coach Louie Alas."

Coming into this game, I told my players that what’s important is that we maintain the rhythm, rather than tying our best start in team history."

Challenged by Alas to apply a more choking defense visibly suspect in their first four games, the Knights came up with a tough defense that hampered the flow of the Blazers’ offense.

And that was evident in the second half, when Letran held PCU to only 20 points and to only nine in the third period, making Alas proud of the way his boys played.

"Nakita ko ‘yung talagang Knights, nandun ‘yung attitude defensively," added the 41-year-old Alas, who guided the Knights to the NCAA title in 1998 and 2003.

The Blazers, who got 14 points from Christian Cabatu, suffered their second straight setback as they dropped to 2-3.

In the junior’s division, the Letran Squires scored their third straight win as they downed the La Salle Green Hills Greenies, 73-66. The Squires improved to 4-1 while the Greenies dropped to 1-4.