LA Salle Green Hills Greenies dethroned two-time defending champion Letran Squires, 78-77, and clinched a berth in the NCAA Season 100 juniors’ basketball finals on Wednesday.

Top gun Guillan Quines returned from a one-game suspension and spearheaded the Greenies' march to the championship round by banging in 28 points including the go-ahead basket with six seconds to play.

Daniel Padilla then missed the possible game-winner for the Squires at the buzzer, sending the Greenies in a frenzy at midcourt of the FilOil EcoOil Centre after pulling off hard-earned back-to-back wins against the no. 2 seeded team.

The celebration though will be short-lived as La Salle Green Hills will face top seed University of Perpetual Help Junior Altas in best-of-three title series starting off on Friday.

The win likewise avenged the Greenies' loss to the Squires during the Season 98 finals, where Letran completed a two-game sweep of La Salle Greenhills behind Titing Manalili and Finals MVP Andy Gemao.

Quines was 9-of-17 from the field to finish with a game-high 28 points, five rebounds, three assists, and six steals as he more than made up for his absence at the start of the Final Four Wednesday.

The La Salle Greenies star served a one-game suspension for the flagrant foul he committed in a game against Emilio Aguinaldo College. Despite his absence, the team managed to eke out a 78-74 win on overtime that forged the winner-take-all.

Padilla led the way with 20 points and nine rebounds, but the Squires missed the services of the suspended Jhuniel Dela Rama, who was whistled for a flagrant foul 2 infraction in the previous game against Arle Podador.

– Quines 28, Gomez, 15, Podador 14, Ison 9 Sharma 5, Ortega 2, Yutuc 2, Osis 2, Abad 1.

– Padilla 20, Hugo 19, Valdeavilla 14, Cargo 5, Silorio 4, Villanueva 4, Alforque 4, Pico 3, Cruz 2, Quijada 2, Quinones 0, Lumague 0.

: 17-22; 38-45; 60-60; 78-77.

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