The DLSU Green Archers ended their elimination round schedule with an 81-75 defeat against archrivals ADMU Blue Eagles earlier today at the Filoil Flying V Center in San Juan. “We played our best but it’s not good enough yet and we just have to keep grinding in practice,” said former Blue Eaglet Joaqui Manuel.
Santi Santillan had an impressive game but his 19 points and nine rebounds were not enough to lead the Green Archers past the UAAP Season 80 champions. Justine Baltazar notched a double-double, recording 16 points and 13 rebounds.
Thirdy Ravena led the Blue Eagles with 17 points, five rebounds, three assists, two steals, and two blocks while Angelo Kouame had a double-double after posting 16 points and grabbing 18 rebounds.
Sluggish start
At the start of the first quarter, the Green Archers opened a seven-point scoring run that began with a jumpshot from Aljun Melecio and capped off by Santillan’s mid range shot. The Blue Eagles converted their first points at the seventh minute mark following a three-pointer by Matt Nieto.
Both teams would exchange points towards the end of the quarter but ADMU went on an 11-0 run behind a three-point shot by Isaac Go. Santillan briefly ended the offensive run of the Blue Eagles following a three-point buzzer beater to end the first quarter and cut the lead of ADMU to four points, 18-14.
DLSU and ADMU went scoreless in the first two minutes of the second quarter and it was Ravena who scored the first points via a three-pointer after La Salle left him wide open. Following this, the Blue Eagles converted six straight points after taking advantage of the turnovers committed by the Green-and-White which inflated ADMU’s lead up to 13 points.
In the last two minutes of the first half, collective efforts from Santillan, Andrei Caracut, Mark Dyke, and Baltazar trimmed the lead of the Blue Eagles to six points which was then extended to eight, 34-28, by virtue of a mid-range jumper from Ravena.
Scintillating half
Baltazar opened the second half with two quick field goals to bring the Green Archers to within two points, 34-32. Raffy Verano and Aaron Black answered back with a three-pointer and a lay-up respectively but Santillan and Melecio combined for seven straight points to tie the game at 39-all with 6:14 minutes remaining in the third quarter.
Santillan and Baltazar continued their offensive onslaught inside the paint to give the Green-and-White their first taste of the lead since the first quarter. La Salle soon erected a seven point lead after Dyke grabbed the offensive rebound and converted a put-back. Mike Nieto and Gian Mamuyac, however, scored six unanswered points to cut the deficit to one, 53-52, to end the third period.
Jolo Mendoza and Adrian Wong kick-started the final canto with a three-pointer and a midrange jumper, respectively, to grab the lead back for the Blue Eagles, 57-53. Both teams traded baskets throughout the quarter but it was the Katipunan-based squad who held the lead heading into the last two minutes of the game.
Ravena scored five straight points to give the Blue Eagles a 70-66 advantage with 23.5 seconds left in the period. Melecio knocked-down a three-pointer to cut the deficit to one, and the Lasallians quickly fouled I. Go to send him to the free throw line. The big man only converted one attempt which gave La Salle an opportunity to tie or win the ball game with 14 seconds remaining. A broken play followed but it allowed Jollo Go to sneak inside the paint and score the game-tying lay-up.
Falling short
In the overtime period, it was Kouame who came up clutch as he converted three lay-ups and a hook shot to lead the Blue Eagles past their rivals. The Green Archers struggled offensively as they would only score four points, courtesy of Caracut’s free throw and J. Go’s three-pointer. Mamuyac and Ravena would seal the win for the Ateneans after converting a free throw each in the last 25.8 seconds of the game.
With the loss, La Salle will finish with seven wins and two losses in Group A of the Filoil Flying V Preseason Cup. The Green Archers are still assured of a spot in the quarter finals which will begin on June 28, but their opponent has yet to be determined.
The scores:
DLSU 75 – Santillan 19, Baltazar 16, Melecio 15, Go 8, Samuel 6, Caracut 4, Dyke 3, Manuel 2, Capacio 2, Lim 0, Bates 0, Manaytay 0
ADMU 81 – Ravena 17, Kouame 16, Go 10, Wong 8, Nieto Matt 6, Mamuyac 5, Verano 5, Nieto Mike 4, Belangel 3, Mendoza 3, White 2, Black 2, Maagdenberg 0, Asistio 0, Navarro 0, Tio 0
Quarter scores: 14-18, 28-34, 53-52, 71-71, 75-81
