A commotion during one San Beda-Letran game in NCAA Season 88. Photo from NCAA.org.ph
A San Beda-Letran game always lives up to the hype—from the fans’ reception, the atmosphere at the arena to the game itself.
Squaring off for the fourth time this season—this time to kick off the NCAA season 91 Finals series—the Red Lions and the Knights are expected to take the energy up a notch, making the series an absolute must-watch.
And these former San Beda and Letran players know exactly how it feels to be in the middle of it all when these two rivals take the court.
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“Kahit eliminations pa lang, ang school excited. Yung buong atmosphere sa school at ng mga players, excited at intense talaga,” said former Letran guard RJ Jazul. “Sa amin namang players, pag San Beda ang kalaban namin, talagang focused kami.”
“Grabe ang sigawan sa game. Kada shoot, kada error, minsan kahit free throws lang, grabe ang sigawan.”
(Even during the elimination round, the school is excited. The atmosphere in the school and with the players, everyone’s excited. It’s all intense. From us players, when we face San Beda, we’re all focused.”
Kevin Alas, who has been through countless of great battles against the Red Lions in his college career, could only describe the atmosphere in a San Beda-Letran match up as hair-raising.
READ: Jarin sees tough, close series ahead for San Beda vs Letran
“Ang treat mo sa Letran-San Beda, parang championship game kasi lahat manonood. Yung pride na maglaro for your school, rivals yan eh so mas bigger ang pressure. Pagpasok mo pa lang ng arena, tataas na ang balahibo mo kasi iba na ang feeling.”
(You treat a San Beda-Letran game like a championship. Everyone watches. You play for the pride of your school against your rivals, so the pressure is bigger. When you get inside the arena, you really get goosebumps. It’s really a different feeling.)
The intensity is felt even by the crowd and sometimes, fans get way too carried away they even break into fights in the stands.
“Yung crowd, puno lagi. Nag-aaway pa nga at naghahabulan sa bleachers. Ganun ka-intense yung rivalry ng San Beda at Letran. It’s a must-watch talaga,” said four-time NCAA champion Garvo Lanete. “Lahat ng players, ibibigay yung best nila kasi ayaw mong matalo sa rivals mo. Ngayon kahit sa Facebook, may away na. Ganun ka-exciting yung laro.”
READ: Lions, Knights in dream NCAA duel
(The crowd is always packed. Sometimes they even get to fights and they chase each other in the bleachers. That’s how intense the rivalry of San Beda-Letran is. It’s really a must watch. Players really give your best because you don’t want to lose to your rivals. As early as now, people are fighting on Facebook. That’s how exciting the game is.”
Rome dela Rosa, who also played for San Beda, also couldn’t forget how passionate fans get when it comes to the rivalry.
“It’s the passion of the alumni and students to the game, it’s something I’d love to be out there too. It’s a great opportunity for the guys playing, to be there in front of all those people. It’s an emotional and crazy experience.”
Like their meetings in the regular season and in the playoff, these former San Beda and Letran players also feel like the finals is too close to call.
Jazul, however, believes that the once-league leading Knights are coming in as underdogs.
“As always, underdog ang Letran,” Jazul said. “Wala kaming import, so malaking factor yun na wala kaming sentro. Pero sana makabulag. Mahirap pero hindi imposible. Ganun naman every year, mahirap every time, pero posible kung malinis ang laro.”
(As always, we’re the underdog. We don’t have an import and that’s a big factor because we don’t have a center. But hopefully we get to win. It’s hard but not possible. It’s always been like that every time, but it’s possible to win if the game is clean.)
READ: ‘Small ball’ works as Letran aims to end 10-year title drought
Lanete, meanwhile, was more confident with his alma mater.
“Maganda na nagkita sa Finals yung dalawang team, pero San Beda yan, 2-0. Ang San Beda pag playoffs, yung experience iba na. Iba na yung experience ni (Baser) Amer, Ola (Adeogun), at Art,” he said.
(It’s good that these two teams met. But San Beda is going to win, 2-0. When it comes to the playoffs, San Beda’s experience is something else. Same with Baser, Ola and Art).
However, there are some who aren’t ready to give their predictions.
“It can go both ways, pero tingin ko aabot ng game three yan. Di mo talaga masabi (It can reach game three, but you really can’t tell),” Alas said.
“It’s evenly matched. I don’t want to play favorites,” said dela Rosa. “Letran has (Kevin) Racal, (Mark) Cruz, and (Rey) Nambatac, guys who are playing well. San Beda still has Ola, Art, and Baser.”
“Letran’s really playing great defense. But having an Ola on your team, he just sets a tone. He has to impose his will in there and if he plays well, everything will follow. San Beda’s second group is playing well, too. But we’ll see how it goes.”
With the battle lines already drawn, these ex-Red Lions and former Knights are wishing the best for their schools, hoping that they could also get their chance to cheer their teams on.
Game 1 of the NCAA Season 91 Finals between San Beda and Letran starts on Friday at Mall of Asia Arena.