By MARK REY MONTEJO
University of the Philippines relied on its second half surge and doused La Salle’s comeback bid for 73-65 win to move one victory away from reclaiming the the men’s basketball title of the UAAP Season 87 at the jam-packed Smart Araneta Coliseum Sunday evening, Dec. 8.
The Fighting Maroons finally ended their losing skid against the Green Archers, who had beaten them four consecutive times since the Season 86 finale, thanks to their rally in the third period where they built a decent separation – a 63-52 cushion off Quentin Millora-Brown’s and-1 jam – to inch closer to their second title in four years.
Millora-Brown came out as the go-to guy for the State U after scattering 17 points, nine rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block while JD Cagulangan and Francis Lopez added 13 apiece.
Kevin Quiambao, who had 18 points in the first two quarters, was shackled in the second half with only one point to add. He still topped La Salle’s scoring with Mike Phillips and EJ Gollena, notching 17 and 11 points, respectively.
The Taft-based squad has its chance to redeem itself against UP this Wednesday, Dec. 11, at Mall of Asia Arena.
With 16, 202-strong crowd at the Big Dome, it was UP steering the wheel in the opening minutes of the game but the fun didn’t last for long as Quiambao unleashed his inner beast and spearheaded La Salle’s offensive charge for an early 18-11 lead.
The Archers’ onslaught continued in the second frame as Quiambao, Gollena and Lian Ramiro took the mantle and countered the Maroons’ 10-4 blast to keep them afloat heading into the break.
Looking good as they were earlier, the Archers got into trouble as the Maroons turned on their suffocating defense and forced DLSU to 18 total turnovers.
Phillips and Liano connived for 9-2 run and tried to save La Salle from with their timely hits that trimmed the deficit to just four, 65-61, with three minutes remaining.
But their efforts weren’t enough as Gerry Abadiano, who contributed nine points and eight rebounds for UP, drilled a jumper and left side triple with 40.1 seconds remaining to seal the game.
The scores:
UP (73) – Millora-Brown 17, Cagulangan 13, Lopez 13, Abadiano 9, Torculas 7, Bayla 5, Alarcon 4, Torres 3, Fortea 2, Stevens 0, Felicilda 0, Ududo 0.
DLSU (65) – Quiambao 19, Phillips 17, Gollena 11, Austria 7, Ramiro 5, David 2, Agunnane 2, Marasigan 2, Dungo 0, Macalalag 0, Gonzales 0, Rubico 0.
Quarterscores: 11-18, 37-41, 50-54, 73-65
