MANILA -- Mapua University and Colegio de San Juan de Letran opened their NCAA Season 98 juniors basketball campaigns on high notes after scoring separate wins Wednesday.

Mapua pulled off a 74-70 overtime win over La Salle Green Hills at the EAC Gym after Noel Agemenyi’s pivotal defensive stop.

Paolo Rorenos' free throw gave the Red Robins a 72-70 lead before Agemenyi intercepted Santi Romero's inbound pass intended for Luis Pablo.

He then nailed two charities with 6.3 ticks left to seal Mapua's victory in the league's first juniors game since November 2019.

Atoning from his missed two foul shots, it was Romero who forced overtime for the Greenies with a floater in the last 7.1 seconds of regulation.

Sean Salvador led the Red Robins with 15 points, six rebounds and two assists while Nicolo Mulingtapang chipped in 10 points and four assists.

Letran, meanwhile, gifted new coach Allen Ricardo a winning start with a 91-86 win over San Sebastian College.

Andy Gemao paced the Squires with 15 points, including a breakaway slam dunk at the seven-minute mark, while Jonathan Manalili added 14 points, five assists, four rebounds and two steals.

Rod Allan led Benilde-LSGH with 17 points, eight boards, three assists and two blocks while Christian Mesias contributed 15 points and nine boards. Mark Danag shot 22 points for the Staglets.

The scores:

Mapua (74) -- Salvador 15, Gonzales 10, Mulingtapang 10, Rodriguez 9, Coronel 9, Agemenyi 7, Morenos 6, Masiglat 4, Go 3, Valiña 1, Catapang 0, Dayrit 0, Manuel 0.

Benilde-LSGH (70) -- Allan 17, Mesias 15, Gagate 13, Pablo 8, Ison 8, S. Romero 4, Rivero 3, Zaragosa 2, Muyela 0, Villaver 0, Natividad 0, R. Romero 0, Gomez 0, Hacuela 0.

Quarterscores: 16-12, 33-30, 46-47, 62-62, 74-70

Letran (91) -- Gemao 15, Manalili 14, Navarro 11, Diamante 10, Padilla 8, Alforque 7, Silorio 7, Cruz 6, Anabo 6, Baliling 5, Hugo 2, Dural 0, Datumalim 0, Cuajao 0, Reyes 0.

SSC-R (86) -- Danag 23, De Leon 14, Jardinico 9, Balbao 9, Parba 8, Reyes 8, Hernandez 6, Geronimo 5, Bularin 2, Porcadas 1, Datario 1, Bandino 0, Caysido 0, Rojas 0.

Quarterscores: 19-22, 40-46, 65-65, 91-86