UAAP: Hail! Hail! Hail! Green Archers emerge as champions

It was once said that champions are made when no one is watching. Today, everyone in the Mall of Asia Arena witnessed the birth of a champion.

In a game filled with gutsy drives and wild finishes, Jeron Teng willed the DLSU Green Archers into championship lore once again, grabbing a 71-69 win over a gritty UST squad. The win wouldn’t have been possible without his improved free throw shooting, as the sophomore made seven of his nine attempts in the title clincher–a testament to the work that he has put in during practice.

History repeated itself as the Green Archers came back from a 15 point deficit to force overtime, just like in the 1999 UAAP finals between these two schools, and from there, DLSU took over. Almond Vosotros hit two late baskets then Jeron Teng and LA Revilla hit free throws to bring the UAAP championship back to Taft Avenue.

Both teams had jitters entering overtime as they could not buy a basket for the first two minutes of the extra period. Vosotros eventually broke the deadlock with a shot to give DLSU the lead, 67-65. Kevin Ferrer quickly tied things up at 67 and Jeric Teng hit a tough baseline jumper to give UST the lead, 69-67, with 34 seconds left in overtime.

Jeron Teng split his free throws to cut the lead to one. Vosotros, who was visibly tired after shooting two air balls on previous possessions, hit the tough go-ahead basket to give DLSU the lead for good, 70-69, with 16.6 seconds left in the game. Karim Abdul lost the ball in the ensuing possession, but UST got it back then they failed to come up with a basket. They had to intentionally foul Revilla, who split his free throws to seal the deal for DLSU.

Jeron Teng had an all around game as he had 25 points, eight rebounds, and six assists en route to a Finals MVP award that capped off a whirlwind season for the Xavier alumnus. Jason Perkins was stellar once again as he scored 13 points and grabbed 18 rebounds, eight of which came from the offensive end. Vosotros had 16 points while Arnold van Opstal had 11 points and eight rebounds.

Abdul led UST with 26 points and Jeric Teng had 24 points in what was his final game as a Growling Tiger. Ferrer had a tough game as he scored just seven points on 12 shots while Aljon Mariano had only three points, all of which came from the free throw line.

Early run

The Green Archers and Growling Tigers engaged in a back-and-forth duel in the first half until UST began to pull away. Jeric Teng and Abdul combined for 27 points in the first half and UST used a 10-3 run to end the second quarter to come away with a 32-24 lead at the break. As a matter of fact, UST’s duo was hitting on all cylinders and out-scored the entire La Salle team come halftime.

The beginning of the third period was no better for La Salle as UST came out of the gates running, taking their biggest lead of the game at 40-25 with 6:38 left in the quarter. The Growling Tigers seemed poised to blow out La Salle, but DLSU refused to quit. Vosotros hit a midrange jumper then Perkins, Jeron Teng and van Opstal joined in on the fray. The Green Archers rallied and trailed by just a single point, 48-47, entering the final period.

With the championship on the line, DLSU and UST began to exchange baskets as they clawed back-and-forth. UST once again pulled away though and led by 5, 61-56, after Jeric Teng made an open three pointer with over five minutes left to play. They maintained this lead until the four minute mark, but Jeron Teng took things into his own hands, driving hard for a fading jumper while drawing a foul though he remained on the floor due to cramps.

The Lasallian faithful held their breath as the sophomore forward exited the game and was replaced by Thomas Torres who made the bonus free throw to cut the lead to two, 61-59. To the surprise of everyone, Jeron Teng then returned to the game and seemed to be unaffected as he then tied the count at 61 with a lay-up.

Ferrer was unaffected by the pressure of the match and he made two free throws to give UST a two-point lead. Vosotros then had difficulty inbounding the ball, but he found Perkins who made a sidestep lay-up to tie the count once again at 63 with 1:37 left to play. Tension was high and both crowds were on their feet as the last minute of regulation unfolded. Jeron Teng isolated against the UST defense, a scene all too familiar for fans everywhere, and he converted a midrange jumper to give La Salle the lead, 65-63. Then, with 53 seconds left to play, Mariano calmly sank two free throws to tie the game, silencing the DLSU side.

La Salle and UST had chances to win it, but they failed to convert and the game went into overtime, just like the last time both teams faced off in the finals back in 1999, which DLSU won. La Salle came away with the win in overtime through their defense, as they swarmed the paint and prevented easy baskets.

The end of a drought

The championship was DLSU’s first in the UAAP since 2007 and capped off a whirlwind season for the Green Archers, who ended the first round with a 3-4 win-loss record before winning 10 of their next 11 games to claim the championship.

“I think it’s just the players following the system and just being consistent,” said a proud La Salle head coach Juno Sauler after the game. “What’s more important for me is that we know what we’re doing,” adding that he doesn’t mind what their opponents do.

Not one to bask in glory though, Sauler ended the season saying, “It has been a season of constant improvement. Even for next year, that will be our focus.” It seems like the youthful mentor is already looking ahead, and the Green Archers will be a team to reckon with come UAAP Season 77.

The scores:

DLSU 71: Teng 25, Vosotros 16, Perkins 13, van Opstal 11, T. Torres 4, N. Torres 1, Revilla 1, Tampus 0, Salem 0

UST 69: Abdul 26, Teng 24, Ferrer 7, Bautista 4, Mariano 3, Sheriff 2, Lao 2, Pe 1

Quarter scores: 16-18, 24-32, 47-48, 65-65, 71-69