UAAP: Green Archers falter against UE, fail to clinch Final Four spot

Turnovers hounded the DLSU Green Archers in their first round matchup against the UE Red Warriors yet they somehow managed to buckle down on defense and end up with the victory. This time however, a crucial turnover cost them an automatic spot in the Final Four as they fell to the streaking UE Red Warriors, 68-66, last September 10 at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum.

Jeron Teng led the Green Archers with 23 points, nine rebounds, and four assists yet it wasn’t enough to garner the victory despite leading by 10 points in the fourth quarter. Bong Galanza was key for UE as he led the team with 21 points and seven rebounds.

“It boiled down to turnovers,” DLSU head coach Juno Sauler said, adding that they will try to limit them in their next game.

Early struggles

The first quarter started off as a close battle between both teams as both DLSU and UE had a difficult time scoring against one another. The Red Warriors however managed to end the quarter on top, 15-13. Galanza and Teng ended with six points each in the quarter to lead their teams.

The second quarter belonged to the Red Warriors as well as they separated themselves from the Green Archers with a 9-0 run. Because of UE’s tough defense, the La Salle had a hard time gaining momentum and failed to catch up. UE then took advantage of DLSU’s slump and extended their lead to as much as 15 points. The first half ended with the UE still on top, 36-22.

Gritty comebacks

The Red Warriors continued to execute their full court press coming into the third, delaying the offensive attack of the Green-and-White. La Salle however intensified their interior defense to force UE, who were unable to score a basket until the six minute mark, to take contested shots. Teng provided the scoring for the Green Archers with his six markers, one less than what the entire UE team scored in the third period. Even with the DLSU run, the Red Warriors remained in the driver’s seat with a score of 43-39.

The Green Archers started the final quarter with an extremely small lineup hoping to counter the full court pressure by UE. La Salle penetrated the UE defense with Prince Rivero manning the center position and scoring two crucial baskets. The threes were finally falling for DLSU as Teng and Almond Vosotros each made timely three pointers to give DLSU the lead.

The Red Warriors, however, sparked another run, recapturing the lead with under two minutes to play.  Down by three points, the Green Archers were forced to foul, letting Roi Sumang earn one of his 14 points from the freethrow line.  Vosotros then made a three pointer to cut the UE lead to three.  After a made free throw by Chris Javier with under two seconds on the clock, Rivero was forced to throw a full court pass that was intercepted by Sumang, which eventually decided the outcome of the game.

“Too many turnovers. Plus, credit also to UE because they shot very well… UE is a very strong team,” Sauler said on his thoughts on the game.

The Green Archers will look to bounce back from the loss to UE this coming Saturday, September 13, when they face the NU Bulldogs at 6 pm in the Smart-Araneta Coliseum. A win against NU will give the Green Archers a playoff for the second seed in the standings against the loser of the match between the ADMU Blue Eagles and the FEU Tamaraws. On the other hand, a loss by DLSU plus a loss by UE against the UST Growling Tigers will give them the fourth seed. If DLSU falls to NU and UE beats UST, a playoff for the last seed in the Final Four will take place.

The Scores:

UE 68 – Galanza 21, Sumang 14, Javier 8, Alberto 6, Jumao-as 6, Mammie 4, Arafat 3, Varilla 2, De Leon 2, Palma 2, Guiang 0, Olayon 0

DLSU 66 – Teng 23, Vosotros 11, Sargent 10, Torres 7, Rivero 7, Montalbo 6, van Opstal 2, Perkins 0, Andrada 0

Quarterscores: 15-13, 36-22, 43-39, 68-66