Surprise visit from recovering Balanza brings out best from Letran

Jerrick Balanza has emerged as an inspiring figure for Letran for their NCAA Season 94 campaign.

It was no surprise that when Balanza made his first appearance since his brain surgery to remove a tumor in the temporal lobe last month on Friday, his teammates responded with an 80-79 squeaker past the top-ranked Lyceum.

“I’m just so happy and no one knew that I was coming only father [Vic Calvo] knew I was going to visit,” said Balanza in Filipino. “I called father Vic and told him that I will drop by and all of us will fight.”

READ: Letran’s Jerrick Balanza out for season due to brain tumor

“I want to see my second family and this was the first time that I felt nervous during a game because I was a spectator,” added Balanza.

Balanza’s surprise visit may have brought out the best in Larry Muyang and Bong Quinto.

Muyang finished with a team-high 23 points with 16 rebounds while Quinto put up 20 points, seven rebounds, and four assists.

READ: Galvelo, role players step up for Letran

“Practice is very different without Jerrick because he’s not there with us and he’s our brother,” said Quinto in Filipino.

“At first I didn’t notice Jerrick then he called me so I felt like it pushed me and Bong said our brother is here and I think this was the surprise father Vic was telling us earlier,” said Muyang in Filipino.