After a contrasting start on day one, the Green and Lady Archers went on to continue their campaign in the UAAP Season 84 3×3 Basketball tournament earlier today, June 3, at Calatagan South Beach, Batangas. The Green Archers finished second place after suffering a devastating defeat against the UST Growling Tigers in the Finals. Meanwhile, the Lady Archers ended their run with a 2-4 win-loss record after losing to eventual champions NU Lady Bulldogs.
Raining twos
With an electrifying three-game winning streak on day one of the tournament, the DLSU Green Archers picked up where they left off as they boasted a 2-1 win-loss record on day two. The Green Archers put up a valiant effort as they bagged a silver medal after a tough Finals defeat against Gilas Pilipinas call-up Sherwin Concepcion and the UST Growling Tigers.
During the heartbreaking loss against UST, the Green Archers remained dominant in the opening minutes of the game, spearheaded by veteran shooter Ralph Cu and rookie Emman Galman’s efficient jumpshots, with the duo recording 10 and nine markers, respectively. However, Concepcion answered right back with successive two-pointers of his own to keep his team going amid La Salle’s high-octane offense. The exchange of twos prevailed as Galman continued to pour out deep shots for DLSU—immediately followed by a Concepcion catapult at the middle—to make it a one-possession game with La Salle leading, 20-19.
After a couple of closely missed shots by Donn Lim and Ben Phillips, La Salle failed to ice the game. It was UST sharpshooter Concepcion who emerged as the hero, capitalizing on the Taft-based squad’s lackluster defense as he ignited a two-pointer off a rebound to claim the win for UST, 21-20.
Hoping to regain their momentum after the tough loss against UST, the Green Archers maintained their hot hands from deep to pull away with a victory against the UP Fighting Maroons. Cu, who fired five two-pointers with 83 percent efficiency, led La Salle’s barrage with 10 points and six rebounds.
Rookie Harold Alarcon of the Fighting Maroons seemed unstoppable once he found his groove in the latter half of the game. Meanwhile, DLSU’s answer was a Galman-Cu tandem who thwarted whatever defense UP threw at them. It was a nip-and-tuck affair as Alarcon’s two-pointer in the middle tied the game at 19-apiece with 1:50 left. However, Cu did not want a repeat of the last game against UST, and so he confidently pulled up immediately for a two on the left wing to give La Salle the win, 21-19.
A heartbreaker
Heading into the Final Four against the NU Bulldogs, the Green Archers bolstered their hot shooting streak, propped up by Lim and Phillips. Both posted seven points—highlighted by two long-distance markers to punch their way into the final game. With a Finals berth on the line, the same back-and-forth exchange was seen with the Archers and Bulldogs. With 42 seconds remaining, Lim buried a two-pointer from a Cu handoff to secure an 18-16 lead. Galman then fished for a foul and knocked down his shot at the stripe, 19-17—sealing the game and securing the Finals berth for DLSU.
Following the cardiac loss against UST ahead of the semifinals, the Green Archers approached the Finals aiming for redemption to win the crown. However, Concepcion’s clutch shooting would again prove to be too much for the Green Archers as they failed to lock him up on the perimeter. The sharpshooting bigman torched DLSU with 12 points on 6/12 shooting from the two-point line.
The game started well for La Salle with a 7-0 burst to light up UST. Since then, the Green Archers looked like they would pull away. In spite of that, Concepcion popped off and single-handedly brought the Tigers within striking distance through four consecutive two-pointers. At the 5:03 mark, UST was trailing, 15-13. This would, in turn, bring the momentum back to UST’s hands, with Concepcion capping it off with another two-pointer from the left wing to steal the game and to win the Men’s 3×3 Basketball crown for the España-based squad, 21-20.
Finding their rhythm
Meanwhile, the Lady Archers continued their 3×3 campaign by battling the UP Fighting Maroons. UP’s pesky defense made it hard for the Lady Archers to make easy shots all game long, but the resilient Lasallians found ways to score as Angel Quingco scored to cut the deficit to one, 5-4, at the 4:00 mark. La Salle veteran Marga Jimenez then picked up the pace by scoring back-to-back points to tie the match at 8-all. The Diliman-based squad tried to stop La Salle’s momentous run as Larrosa managed to get one only for Briana Espinas to tie the game, 9-all, at the 1:30 mark. Despite the Lady Archers managing to score buckets, the Lady Maroons always found a way to stay within striking distance. Fighting Maroon Marian Domingo tied the game once again at 9-all after a flashy crossover jumpshot. But when the game was on the line, Jimenez secured the win for the Green-and-White with a layup—garnering their second win of the tournament, 12-11.
After bagging a narrow win over the Fighting Maroons, the Lady Archers faced the tough NU Lady Bulldogs in what would be their final game of the day. Lady Archer Jimenez started the affair with a reverse layup to open the scoring. However, the Lady Bulldogs showcased their championship DNA and went on a 4-0 run to claim a 4-1 lead at the 7:45 mark. Bettina Binaohan and Quingco tried to weather the storm by scoring back-to-back points to cut the lead to one, 4-3. With NU’s immense scoring capability, the Taft-based squad took the assignment head on and limited NU to only five points halfway into the game. Despite showing up on the defensive end, the women in Green-and-White mightily struggled to convert their shots all game. Eager to make a comeback, Binaohan tied the game with a layup, 8-all, at the 1:58 mark. Lady Bulldog Kristine Cayabyab then brought the lead down to two—taking advantage of an open shot, 10-8. With the game on the line, Binaohan showed up once again to tie the game at 10-all at the 50-second mark, giving the Lady Archers a chance to steal the match. But it was seasoned star Camille Clarin who answered back by sending herself to the line for two points with only two seconds left on the clock—ultimately escaping the brave Lady Archers. DLSU, who ended their 3×3 campaign with a tough 12-10 loss, was led by Binaohan with seven points and three rebounds and Quingco who posted 10 boards. Despite finishing with a 2-4 win-loss record, the Lady Archers showed great promise and bravery in their first appearance for over two years.
After a brave 3×3 stint from both the Green and Lady Archers, fans of the Green-and-White can expect greater results in the near future—and promising men’s and women’s squads.
