Red Lions gun for semis bonus vs Knights

MANILA—San Beda coach Frankie Lim wants the Lions to stick to their aggressive defense when they  go for the last semifinal bonus in the NCAA men’s basketball tournament Friday.

Hoping to avoid any complications, the Lions (14-2) try to ambush the Letran Knights (14-3) to secure the No. 2 spot in their 4 p.m. clash at the FilOil-Flying V Arena in San Juan.

“We know that this game is crucial to our campaign,” said Lim. “The players know that it’s not going to be easy, especially against Letran. We have to show the same aggressiveness on defense. We have to make sure everybody is on the same page.”

A victory will assure the Lions the No. 2 spot behind leader and first semifinalist San Sebastian Stags and give them the remaining twice-to-beat advantage in the Final Four.

But if Letran wins—coupled with another San Beda loss versus San Sebastian next Wednesday—the Knights will put a lock on the No. 2 berth and claim the semifinal incentive.

If the Lions and the Knights end up at 15-3 at the end of the eliminations, they will dispute the Final Four bonus in a playoff match.

The Lions rolled past the Knights in their first-round meeting, 77-62, where Garvo Lanete sizzled with 21 points.

Eliminated teams St. Benilde and Emilio Aguinaldo College try to bow out with a win in the first game at 2 p.m.

“I think the team is going into the game more confident,” said coach Louie Alas a week after his Knights halted the Stags’ 15-game winning streak with an 82-81 overtime upset.

“But of course, San Beda is San Beda. I think they still have the deepest bench in the league.”

Both San Beda and Letran are two wins behind idle San Sebastian, which claimed the first twice-to-beat incentive with a 16-1 record.

The Knights, bannered by Alas’ clutch-shooting son Kevin, hope to address the third-quarter collapse that had hit the team in recent games.

“San Beda always comes out very strong in the third quarter, so we can’t afford to do that,” said Alas. “We have to check our third-quarter meltdown.”

Alas also knows that the Lions will hit the floor running behind ace gunner Lanete.

“We expect San Beda to run, but we must also be able to execute against their zone for us to have a good chance,” said Alas.