THE UNIVERSITY of the Philippines survived on Wednesday De La Salle University’s furious fourth-quarter comeback, 67-64, in the 86th Season UAAP Men’s Basketball Tournament at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.
The Fighting Maroons had a well-balanced offense with eight players scoring five points or more. Malick Diouf, the tournament MVP, led the way with 10 points on 50 percent shooting, 18 rebounds, and two blocks, with the Maroons handing La Salle its third loss in six games.
Gerry Abadiano had an outstanding performance. With 13 points, he led UP’s balanced offense. Abadiano also hit a critical mid-range shot to break the tie, giving UP a 65-63 lead with 1:01 left.
Championship experience
Photo Courtesy: UAAP Media Group
Despite the scare, last season’s runners-up maintained their cool and wits to prevail. The Fighting Maroons are now one win away from sweeping the first round of eliminations.
The Fighting Maroons trailed the Green Archers by as many as 11 points in the first half. What allowed them to storm back into the game, according to head coach Goldwin Monteverde, was their defense.
“We started medyo flat sa both ends nung first half and actually, ang difference lang sakin nung first and second half would be ‘yung defense namin,” revealed Monteverde.
“Nung second it was much better, at the same time yung mga loose ball, we were really working for mga loose ball na mga narerecover namin. It’s all about wanting it more siguro for us,” he explained.
Game of runs
The heated game was determined by the individual teams’ runs, as the Green Archers went from a 47-38 halftime advantage to a 50-59 deficit after a third-quarter scoring disaster.
During that time, La Salle shot only 1-of-21 from the field, with the lone basket coming from a Kevin Quiambao three-pointer. This allowed the Fighting Maroons to develop and enjoy an 11-point lead midway through the fourth quarter, 63-52.
The Green Archers responded with an 11-0 run. At 5:41, Joshua David shot a left-corner three-pointer, the Green Archers’ first field goal since the first 11 seconds of the third canto. With 2:13 remaining, Mike Phillips, CJ Austria, Mark Nonoy, and Quiambao scored eight straight points to tie the game at 63.
With 1:01 left, Abadiano pulled UP back ahead with a midrange jumper from the left side, 65-63. This effectively ended the game in favor of the Fighting Maroons.
Phillips led the Green Archers with 15 points, 14 rebounds, and three blocks. They were paced by Quiambao’s 14 points and seven rebounds. Evan Nelle, La Salle’s dependable point guard, was out due to a quad contusion.
La Salle coach Topex Robinson believes the team is still figuring out how to prosper this season.
“We know that it’s gonna be a long way to go for us. We know that we will play eight more games before we end the elimination. Just like what Mike said, we’re gonna use these loses as a tool for us to get better,” said the DLSU head coach.
“It just so happened that we’re representing a program that’s really a successful program, and we know that pressure’s a privilege for us,” he said. “We’d rather be here, getting judged. You know, people getting mad at us, we’d rather be here cause this will only make us better.”
The Green Archers dropped their second straight game and are now at 3-3, tied at third place with Ateneo and Adamson University.
On Sunday, UP will go for 7-0 against Ateneo de Manila University in a replay of the last two finals at the Mall of Asia Arena. Meanwhile, DLSU will face UE at the UST Quadricentennial Pavilion.
