The DLSU Green Archers fired away a blockbuster 77-66 win over the UP Fighting Maroons in their Round Two face off to cement themselves as the top seed in the UAAP Season 87 Men’s Basketball Tournament earlier tonight, November 10, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Coming alive for the defending champions’ resounding victory was Player of the Game Mike Phillips who sparked a double-double outing of 14 points, 10 rebounds, and one assist. Reigning MVP Kevin Quiambao further fueled the statement win with 15 points, five rebounds, and three assists of his own.
Returning hero JD Cagulangan, who was not present in their Round One meeting, prudently showed up for the Fighting Maroons with a relentless 22-point explosion alongside six rebounds and five assists.
Seesaw succession
The first quarter witnessed a rocky start for both teams as they were limited to two points apiece in the first two minutes on the hardcourt. Despite the poor shooting and missed second chance attempts, Henry Agunanne eventually scored to gain a two-point advantage against the Maroons, 6-4. At the 3:14 mark, a drive inside by David and a jumper by Torres led the game to the fourth deadlock of the quarter, 10-all. UP’s defense limited La Salle’s offensive opportunities as the Green-and-White’s missed crucial shots even with second chance attempts, leading to a low-scoring output for La Salle. The first quarter ended with an assertive slam by M. Phillips to cut UP’s lead to two, 14-12.
The Green Archers approached the second quarter doubling their defensive efforts with Jcee Macalalag scoring from a floater, 14-all. Despite the scrappier defense, La Salle’s offense was still a problem against UP’s stellar shooting. Raven Gonzales stepped up for the Archers, contributing back-to-back points from an offensive rebound and a floater to gain a four-point advantage, 24-20. Fresh from a timeout, UP quickened the pace and unleashed a 9-0 run as La Salle was left scrambling, 29-24. Similar to their past games, shooting foul balls was the team’s Waterloo as M. Phillips missed both attempts, 37-26.
With three minutes left on the clock, Matthew Rubico and Andrei Dungo, who came off the bench, exhibited better court vision, leading to more scoring opportunities for the Green Archers. The team from Taft was able to orchestrate a flawless 9-0 run in response to UP, spearheaded by Quiambao’s shot from beyond the arc, notching his second bucket of the match. Seniors CJ Austria and M. Phillips followed suit with key contributions to cut the lead to two, 37-35. Keeping UP’s lead alive was Cagulangan’s layup and Sean Alter’s two-pointer against Quiambao which handed the Fighting Maroons a three-point edge over the Green Archers to end the first half, 43-40.
Surging ahead to the top
Trailing behind in close contention, the defending champions refused to back down as they limited the second-seeded Fighting Maroons to a resolute performance early on in the third quarter to take control for the rest of the match. The Green Archers ignited an 8-2 run off a scoring spree from in the paint as Macalalag became enlivened to snatch a meek one-point lead, 48-47. EJ Gollena and Joshua David’s three out of four baskets from the charity stripe further extended La Salle’s lead to three, but was promptly neutralized by a trey from UP’s Sean Torculas to tie the match, 51-all. Nonetheless, Player of the Game M. Phillips burst out in the home stretch of the quarter with a hook shot and putback to cap off a 6-0 run for the Taft-based ballers and hold on to a six-point gutter come the final quarter, 57-51.
In the final hurrah of the match, the Green Archers overcame a better offensive outing by the Fighting Maroons with more efficient possessions converted to field goals. The Green-and-White delivered from beyond the arc as Quiambao, Macalalag, and David tripled a lone trey from Cagulangan to clinch a comfortable double-digit cushion for La Salle, their biggest lead so far, 68-58. Despite an attempt by the Diliman-based squad to fight back with efficient free throw conversions, a floater from Gonzales off a highlight Quiambao assist and layup from Austria added insult to injury as La Salle held on to an 11-point lead in the last two minutes of the match, 73-62. And as a cherry on top, Dungo made his layup and two freebies as the buzzer rang to signify a momentous elimination sweep of the UP Fighting Maroons by the Green Archers, 77-66.
Despite being down in the first half, Head Coach Topex Robinson shared that refocusing the team’s mentality was vital in overturning the match, “We just reminded everybody that we have to treat this game as a championship. We know that UP will really come out with guns blazing and we just tried to match their energy; and to be more composed on both ends and to really execute our offense.”
With one game left before the semifinals, Player of the Game M. Phillips shared that the team will treat each game with great importance, leaving no room for complacency, ”The best thing to really (do) is make sure we’re not complacent because watching how the other teams are fighting, they’re fighting for their season…This is a game of basketball; anybody can beat anybody on any given day.”
The DLSU Green Archers now set their sights on finishing Round Two with a clean sweep as they take on their final hurdles, the NU Bulldogs, on Wednesday, November 13, at 2 pm at the UST Quadricentennial Pavilion.
The Scores:
DLSU 77 – Quiambao 15, Phillips 14, David 12, Macalalag 9, Gonzales 7, Agunanne 6, Gollena 4, Dungo 4, Austria 2, Marasigan 2, Ramiro 2, Rubico 0
UP 66 – Cagulangan 22, Bayla 10, Torculas 9, Torres 8, Lopez 6, Stevens 3, Alarcon 2, Alter 2, Briones 2, Fortea 2, Abadiano 0, Belmonte 0, Felicilda 0, Udodo 0
Quarter Scores: 12-14, 40-44, 57-51, 77-66
