The DLSU Green Archers yielded another loss against UE Red Warriors, 72-80, reminiscent of their defeat in the first round and were forced to settle for a risky 6-7 win-loss record in the UAAP Season 85 Men’s Basketball Tournament at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Despite the losing effort, Mark Nonoy led the Green Archers in scoring with 14 points, five rebounds, and four assists. Bright Nwankwo and CJ Austria both chipped in 10 points for the Green and White, while Evan Nelle flirted with a triple-double as he tallied eight points, seven boards, and five assists.
Meanwhile, Rey Remogat was unconscious from the perimeter as he unloaded four three-pointers to finish with 24 points. It was a balanced scoring effort for the Red Warriors as Kyle Paranada, Gani Stevens, and Luis Villegas also reached double-digits in scoring with 13, 12, and 10, respectively. Villegas also tallied a near triple-double for UE, registering 10 points, 12 rebounds, and eight assists in the win.
Barrage from both sides
DLSU came to play early on, dominating the opening quarter of the game coming out of the gates. Austria’s aggressiveness ignited the team’s offense as he scored the first six points for the Green Archers. The duo of Ben Phillips and Nwankwo took control of the paint, the two crashed the boards with two and three rebounds, respectively, while limiting UE’s attempts inside the paint. The Taft-based squad was efficient from beyond the arc, shooting 50 percent on their attempts from deep, but the UE Red Warriors’ stellar shooting from the charity line kept them in the game, only missing one free throw in the opening quarter, hitting 9/10 from the stripe. La Salle’s offensive prowess slowed down toward the end of the quarter, allowing the Red Warriors to close the gap, 22-16. Jcee Macalalag banked in two free throws to further their lead by eight points. Kevin Quiambao hit a buzzer-beater three following an assist from Evan Nelle to end the first quarter in favor for the Green Archers, 27-16.
DLSU picked up right where they left off from the first frame with their momentous hot shooting being evident from the get-go as Macalalag’s corner jumper opened La Salle’s scoring in the second quarter, 29-17. UE, who had been struggling on their perimeter shooting, came back as Paranada and Ryzel Gilbuena’s consecutive triples trimmed the lead to single digits, 32-23.
UE head coach Jack Santiago adapted his Red Warriors’s defense to a two-three zone after a timeout to try and put a stop on the Taft-based squad’s fiery run. This defensive adjustment worked for them as La Salle has missed four consecutive shots outside the paint.
With the team from Taft still in an offensive drought, a triple threat of Villegas, K. Paranada, and Remogat cut the lead to three with an unanswered 9-0 run of their own, 32-29. After another bucket by UE from Stevens, Nwankwo and Quiambao broke the dry spell for DLSU to hang on to a five-point lead with 58 seconds left in the second period, 36-31. However, Red Warrior Stevens had the last say of the half, hitting a post shot once again to keep them within striking distance before halftime, 36-33.
Fighting tooth and nail
UE was not backing down from the challenge as they outscored La Salle, 17-15, in the quarter. Ben Philips scored the opening point of the third frame coming off a bullet pass from Nonoy. It was a tight race between the two teams as La Salle and UE both answered shot after shot of the opposing team. Fresh from a timeout, Stevens buried a timely basket for the Red Warriors. Raven Cortez answered Stevens’ slick post move with two of his own to make things even. Remogat then heated up, scoring four of the last six points of UE in the third frame. Villegas put back a missed shot from Remogat just in time to cut the Green Archers’ lead to one, 51-50, at the end of third.
Neither DLSU nor UE backed down in the opening possessions of the final period, exchanging shot-for-shot as both teams were lights out on offense. The game saw three deadlocks in just this quarter alone, before Nonoy launched a corner triple with two minutes remaining to swing the lead back to DLSU, 65-64. Right after, the speedy guard’s pesky defense snatched the ball off K. Paranada’s hands, which led to another Nonoy three-pointer at the same spot to single-handedly boost the lead to four, 68-64.
The team from Recto would not let go though as Remogat—who had already been the Red Warriors’ hero for most of the game—pulled up just outside the paint, followed by a K. Paranada fastbreak layup to deuce up the affair heading into overtime, 68-all.
Hero to zero
The Green Archers looked promising at the start of the overtime, going on a 4-0 run. K. Paranada then fired up five straight points to turn the tables, giving his side the lead, 73-72, with 2:39 remaining in the bonus period. Remogat came up big yet again for UE, flawlessly swishing two free throws at the 1:19 mark and hitting a clutch three to buff up their lead to six, 78-72. La Salle had no answer for the backcourt duo of K. Paranada and Remogat. Villegas then sealed off the Red Warriors’ victory by hitting two shots at the line. La Salle could not execute in their last possessions, falling to UE, 72-80, at the end of overtime.
With DLSU standing at 6-7, the AdU Soaring Falcons now hold the fourth-seed with a 7-6 record. The Lasallian community would hope for their bitter rivals in the ADMU Blue Eagles to win their next schedule against Adamson, which would potentially force a play-in for the last Final Four slot. With their hopes of making it to the Final Four still alive, the Green Archers will face the UST Growling Tigers on Wednesday, November 30, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The Scores:
DLSU 72 – Nonoy 14, Nwankwo 10, Austria 10, Nelle 8, Macalalag 8, Cortez 8, Quiambao 7, B. Phillips 4, Estacio 3, Abadam 0, Winston 0
UE 80 – Remogat 24, K. Paranada 13, Stevens 12, Villegas 8, N. Paranada 6, Gilbuena 5, Sawat 4, Pagsanjan 4, Payawal 2, Tulabut 0, Alcantara 0
Quarter Scores: 27-16, 36-33, 51-50, 68-68, 80-72
One reply on “UAAP: Green Archers suffer sorry overtime loss at the hands of the Red Warriors”
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