San Sebastian College-Recoletos finally found its spark, and it came through the calm and cold-blooded hands of Jhuniel Dela Rama.
The rookie forward powered the Golden Stags to hard-earned victories against perennial contender Letran and league-leading University of Perpetual Help to unanimously earn the Collegiate Press Corps (CPC) NCAA Player of the Week award presented by the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC).
Dela Rama first lifted San Sebastian to an emotional 82–81 escape over his former team Letran on October 29.
The ex-Squire delivered the game-winner with three seconds left, sinking a tough shot over the arms of Mark Omega to end both the Stags’ five-game skid and the Knights’ five-game winning streak.
He finished with 20 points, seven rebounds, two assists, and two steals in the upset win.
After a short break, the 6-foot-2 Leyte-native continued his onslaught, steering the Stags past Group A leader Perpetual, 62–61. He tallied a double-double of 15 points and 10 rebounds with two assists to match.
Much like he did against Letran, Dela Rama provided a crucial insurance basket to put Baste in the driver’s seat, 62–58, with 48.1 seconds left, enough cushion to seal the win.
“Binabalik ko lang ‘yong tiwalang binibigay nila sa’kin. Sabi ko nga, pinagkakatiwalaan nila ako. Sinasabi nila na: ‘Sige, sa’yo na,’ kaya ginagawa ko lang ‘yong role ko,” the young bruiser said.
“Alam ko rin naman na ‘di selfish ‘yong mga kasama ko. Pinapasa talaga nila ‘yong bola sa’kin ‘pag kailangan.”
The back-to-back wins improved the hungry San Sebastian squad to a 3-7 record, keeping their hopes alive for a twice-to-beat incentive in the latter stretch of the elimination round.
Dela Rama’s clutch performances were enough to zoom past College of Saint Benilde’s Tony Ynot, Perpetual’s Patrick Sleat, and last week’s awardee Titing Manalili for the citation supported by minor sponsors Discovery Suites and Buffalo Wings N’ Things, voted upon and deliberated by print and online scribes covering the collegiate sports beat.
