Earlier today, the DLSU Green Archers broke their winning streak after facing yet another defeat from the Ateneo Blue Eagles, 62-71, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. La Salle remains at third with an 8-5 win-loss record while ADMU still dominates the table with a record of 11 wins and two losses.
Thirdy Ravena and Kakou Kouame each earned a double-double, with the former posting 14 points and 10 rebounds, and the latter chipping in 11 points, 10 rebounds, and two steals.
In the losing effort, Aljun Melecio tallied 13 points, seven rebounds, and three steals while Justine Baltazar recorded a total of 12 points, eight rebounds, and two assists. Coming back from his recent foot injury, Taane Samuel managed to contribute to the table, scoring a total of eight points and two rebounds.
Having just recovered from a Jones fracture, Samuel was immediately put to the test as his first game back was against the Ateneo Blue Eagles. “It was nerve racking. I was nervous coming into the game, massive expectations coming from the season they had last year but it was good. I enjoyed it, I just did what I could out there,” Samuel responded when asked about his first Ateneo-La Salle experience.
Equal first half
The first half of the game started off with both teams trading baskets. Ateneo led by three at the 6:59 mark after a three-point shot from Anton Asistio and a layup from Raffy Verano. With 5:25 to go in the first quarter, Samuel finally returned to play in the court and wasted no time in aiding La Salle’s defense with his towering height.
The Green-and-White proceeded to exchange baskets with the team from Katipunan, eventually bringing themselves to a lead after team captain Kib Montalbo scored off a layup. With 1:13 remaining on the clock, Samuel got past the Ateneo defense and managed to score a layup, closing the first quarter with a four-point advantage in favor of La Salle, 22-18.
Santi Santillan opened the second period with a layup on the 8:38 mark and a putback from Baltazar. La Salle brought their biggest lead of the game to eight after Melecio scored a three-pointer with 6:41 remaining in the first half. Ateneo had open chances at shooting three-pointers but luck was not on their side as they were not able to sink these baskets. The Green Archers were also given chances to extend their lead when three free throws were given to Melecio after being fouled by Jose Mendoza, but he was not able to score off of any.
Blue Eagle Willam Navarro then launched a 9-0 run after shooting both free throws. Tyler Tio followed up with a layup from a Ravena assist. The latter also managed to convert free throws. Mike Nieto capped off ADMU’s run with a three-pointer to tie the game at 33-all. With eight seconds left to play, Santillan managed to score a layup but Mi. Nieto was quick to answer with a putback to conclude the second quarter at 35-all.
At the half, the ADMU Blue Eagles were able to bench 26 points compared to the Green Archers’ 12. Although La Salle had a better field goal percentage, Ateneo was more efficient with their free throws as they were able to score 10 out of 12 while La Salle scored only six out of 10 attempts.
Losing it late
After an intense first half, the Green Archers looked to match that same intensity in the second half. Both teams started the second half strongly as they traded baskets all throughout the third quarter. The third period started with Melecio splitting his free throws, which was quickly answered with back-to-back baskets courtesy of Verrano. The two imports had themselves a strong third quarter as Samuel and Kouame had four and six points, respectively, in the quarter. The third quarter ended with an Isaac Go three-pointer to give the Blue Eagles a four-point advantage, 54-50.
It looked to be the same story at the start of the fourth period with both teams yet again trading baskets. Baltazar started the scoring for La Salle with a layup but it was swiftly answered by a Tio three-pointer. The score was at 58-52 in favor of Ateneo at the 8:15 mark of the fourth period. After both teams traded a couple more baskets, Ateneo went on a decisive 8-0 run at the 4:09 mark. La Salle failed to recover from this as Ateneo’s late run proved to be enough as they won the game, 71-62.
After the game, head coach Louie Gonzalez explained what went wrong in their matchup against the Blue Eagles. “All throughout the game there are instances, especially nung may lead yung team and then magmi–miss kami ng mga free throws, that hurt us… if na–convert namin yun, nabigyan pa kami sana ng breathing space,” said Gonzalez.
(All throughout the game there were instances, especially when the team had the lead and then we would miss free throws, that hurt us… if we converted those, we could have gotten some breathing space.)
The Taft-based team will look to immediately bounce back and solidify their final four position, in a matchup against the UP Fighting Maroons this Wednesday, November 14, at 4 pm at the Mall of Asia Arena.
The scores:
DLSU 62 – Melecio 13, Baltazar 12, Santillan 10, Caracut 8, Samuel 8, Manuel 5, Montalbo 2, Bates 2, Serrano 2
ADMU 71 – Ravena 14, Kouame 11, Verano 9, Navarro 7, Nieto Mi. 7, Nieto Ma. 6, Tio 5, Mamuyac 5, Asistio 3, Go 3, Daves 1.
Quarter scores: 22-18, 35-35, 50-54, 62-71
