By MARK REY MONTEJO
La Salle nearly squandered its first-half lead before surviving University of Santo Tomas’ final stand in overtime, 94-87, to notch its fifth straight victory in the UAAP men’s basketball tournament at Mall of Asia Arena Wednesday, Oct. 16.
After coming out strong in the first half, the Green Archers gradually lost their lead in the fourth quarter as Forthsky Padrigao and Nic Cabanero delivered for the Growling Tigers to force an overtime.
La Salle star and reigning MVP Kevin Quiambao then displayed steely nerves and showed the way for La Salle in the extra period.
Quiambao had a monstrous offensive effort of career-high 29 points on top of nine rebounds and three assists while Mike Phillips had a double-double of 16 points and 13 rebounds. Raven Gonzales chipped in 11.
UST came close to victory but Padrigao missed a clutch free throw that could have given an 81-80 lead for the Espana-based crew.
Padrigao had 15 points while Cabanero topscored with 23 points along with 12 rebounds, three assists and three steals. Mo Tounkara, who got ejected in the waning minutes of the final canto, chalked up 15 points while Miguel Pangilinan had 10.
Aside from its fifth consecutive triumph, the Taft-based squad moved atop the standings with an 8-1 win-loss record while UST dropped to 4-5 at fourth.
Quiambao immediately made his presence felt in the opening quarter, scoring 10 out of 14 points which gave La Salle a blazing 14-0 start.
Though Cabanero momentarily doused the fiery run, the Green Archers’ onslaught continued as they went off to a telling 17-7 attack that resulted to a 40-20 cushion before halftime.
From there, UST crawled back in the fourth frame and managed to extend the game.
The scores:
La Salle (94) – Quiambao 29, Phillips 16, Gonzales 11, Gonzales 8, Gollena 7, Agunanne 6, Austria 6, Macalalag 6, David 3, Marasigan 2, Ramiro 0, Abadam 0, Rubico 0, Konov 0
UST (87) – Cabanero 23, Padrigao 15, Tounkara 14, Pangilinan 10, Paranada 8, Manaytay 7, Llemit 3, Estacio 3, Robinson 2, Crisostomo 2, Mahmood 0, Lane 0, Acido 0, Danting 0
