Alas 3-pointer lifts Letran past San Sebastian in OT, Knights snap Stags' win streak

Kevin Alas was still in his rookie year when Letran foiled San Sebastian’s bid of clinching its 16th straight win in the 2009 season of the NCAA men’s basketball tournament.

The Knights duplicated that feat in the 87th season with Alas, this time, playing the hero’s role. The veteran playmaker shrugged off his shooting struggles and knocked in the marginal three-pointer as Letran escaped with an 82-81 overtime win over San Sebastian Friday at The Arena in San Juan City. Alas scored 22 points and hit a wide-open triple—his lone attempt from beyond the arc—with 22.9 seconds left in the extra period as the Knights grabbed the lead after the Stags’ Ronald Pascual scored five straight for an 81-79 lead. The Knights (13-3) duplicated their 2009 feat when they snapped the Stags’ 15-game winning streak, 80-63. “Thanks to history," said Letran coach Louie Alas. The younger Alas, who suffered a mild left ankle sprain at the end of the first quarter, struggled the entire game and missed all of his six three-point attempts before that dagger triple. He also shot 7-of-19 from the two-point range He came back to play in the final five minutes of the game. “Before I made the shot, I looked at my dad as if asking him if I’m going to attempt the shot. But he didn’t looked back as if telling me ‘it’s your own call’" said Alas. The Knights bounced back from their upset loss to University of Perpetual Help System DALTA to remain in third place behind San Beda (14-2). “When Kevin plays the pick-and-roll, they give him the jumpshot. So I told him to attack the basket. But during the last play, I let him decide what to do," said the Letran coach. Kevin Alas scored on a lay-up, 72-68, with 1:33 left in regulation but Pascual hit back-to-back baskets including a put back of his own miss to send the game into overtime. VJ Espiritu drilled a three-pointer—his first made basket after six missed triples—to put the Knights in the driver’s seat, 79-76, with a minute and 31 seconds left to play in overtime. Pascual again tied the game with a well-defended triple before taking over the lead with a lay-up 1:09 to go. Pascual defended Alas on the next play but gave him too much space allowing him to hit the game-winning triple. Letran enjoyed an 18-10 lead over San Sebastian in the first period but it was a tight contest after that. Jam Cortes had 13 points, seven rebounds and four assists while Franz Dysam added 12 markers shooting 4-of-8 from the three-point range for the Knights. Pascual tallied 25 points while Ian Sangalang backed him up with 22 markers and 13 rebounds. Calvin Abueva scored 16 points and had 20 rebounds. — JVP, GMA News