San Beda University rookie Janti Miller’s play has only continued to go up as the Red Lions head into the quarterfinals of the NCAA Season 101.
The 21-year-old guard dropped a career-high 34 points that went with five rebounds and one assist in the Red Lions’ narrow 87-83 defeat to their longtime nemesis Colegio de San Juan de Letran on Sunday.
Despite losing the game, Miller has gained more praise for his monster performance, this time from no less than Letran coach Allen Ricardo himself.
The Letran mentor believes Miller is playing like he’s already bound for the pro level, fully recognizing the talent right in front of him.
“Kay Miller talagang halos bound for pro na yun eh. Ang galing. I’ve witnessed how he handled tough situations especially yung mga one-on-one sa court. Iba talaga yung kalibre,” Ricardo said.
(Miller, he's just about bound for the pros. So good. I've witnessed how he handled tough situations, especially the one-on-ones. He's a different caliber.)
Miller carried San Beda on his back until the waning seconds of the match, where they nearly made a comeback if it weren’t for his Letran counterpart in Titing Manalili, who, in turn, also delivered his own career-high 26-point outing all in a non-bearing game.
The 6-foot-4 Miller was flattered by the praises consistently thrown his way, but emphasized that he remains focused on the bigger prize — helping his San Beda team go all the way to the championship.
“We’ve had our differences in the first game with Letran. But at the end of the game, we shook each other’s hands, acknowledging each other’s game. Good game, good coaching. But shout out to Coach Allen, he has a good team over there,” Miller said.
“It’s definitely nice being acknowledged around the league for my talent. But at the same time, I’m only focused on doing what I have to do right now. If it’s professional bound, it’s a nice comment. It means I’m doing something great, it means I’m doing well,” he added.
The Red Lions, who are armed with a twice-to-beat advantage, are still awaiting the winner of the play-in between Lyceum of the Philippines University and San Sebastian College-Recoletes to determine their next assignment.
For Miller, the loss has only given him an added motivation going into the next round on Thursday.
“It’s the same thing for every game. But now it’s time to turn it up a notch and compete and kill it. It’s an added motivation coming off a loss. We didn’t end the postseason on a win, so we’re coming back in the quarterfinal and looking for that win,” he concluded.
—JMB, GMA Integrated News
