Knights find unlikely heroes in win over Generals

Role players picked up the slack offensively to help Letran beat Emilio Aguinaldo College, 92-81, in the NCAA Season 94 men’s basketball tournament Tuesday at Filoil Flying V Centre in San Juan.

Rookie Coy Galvelo and Jeremiah Taladua stepped up with 15 points apiece while Fran Yu added 13 as the three gave the Knights an offensive lift with main hitters Bong Quinto and JP Calvo struggling.

Quinto and Calvo couldn’t find the mark as they combined for only 13 points and shot similar 2-of-12 shooting from the field.

“Good win for us. At least, somehow we’re still one-game ahead of the teams trying to catch us,” said Letran head coach Jeff Napa, whose squad upped its record to 9-4.

“They (Quinto and Calvo) were struggling but it was only on the offensive end but I was confident others will step up and luckily, these three gave us instant offense,” Napa added.

Yu scored eight points in the final frame where Letran built its biggest lead at 19.

Quinto and Calvo still found ways to contribute despite their offensive woes. Quinto finished with eight points, eight rebounds, six assists and a block while Calvo had five points, four rebounds, nine assists and two steals.

Jerome Garcia scored 20 points while Hamadou Laminou registered 16 points and 11 rebounds for the Generals (2-11).