Letran eyes 9th victory, tests Mapua

ARMED with renewed confidence, pacesetter Letran opens its second round campaign against cellar dweller Mapua today at the start of the second round of the 89th NCAA basketball tournament at Filoil Flying V Arena in San Juan.

The Knights head into the 4 p.m. showdown buoyed by their conquest of defending champion San Beda Lions last Saturday.

The Lions also hope to regroup as they seek payback against the Lyceum Pirates in the main game at 6 p.m.

Tied with Perpetual Help at second spot with a 7-2 record, the Lions hope to pull out all the stops to avoid a repeat of their stunning 66-70 defeat to the Pirates in the first round.

The Knights have rolled to an 8-1 start with the loss to Perpetual Help as the only blemish to their record.

But the 74-67 victory against San Beda has given coach Caloy Garcia renewed belief in his charges.

“The win is good for our confidence which we will hopefully carry in the second round,” said Garcia.

The Knights boast of a solid core led by Mark Cruz and big man Raymond Almazan who has been producing MVP-like numbers in the first nine games of the season.

Almazan finished with 22 points and 11 boards against the Lions.