Martin San Diego | FCF

In a battle of two evenly-matched teams, let gravity be the judge.

That was the case between De La Salle University and Adamson University yesterday.

In their first round meeting, the green team escaped their rivals from the other end of Taft amidst a controversial call that resulted in the temporary suspension of a referee.

In their second round encounter, both teams seem to refuse to win or lose, depending on how a spectator would view it.

In the winning play of the game, La Salle point guard LA Revilla drove to his baseline and threw a botched teardrop shot. In the ensuing scramble, Revilla’s backcourt partner Almond Vosotros tapped the loose ball to Arnold Van Opstal, who instinctually passed the ball back to Vosotros.

Vosotros then fired a 10-foot jumper and it took five bounces on the rim before the ball was sucked inside the net. He finished the game leading the Archers with 19 points, nine rebounds, and five assists.

In the final play and with 1.8 seconds left, La Salle forced Adamson to its second consecutive bad pass as inbounder Celedonio Trollano issued a pass to Jericho Cruz that went wayward.

MORE: De La Salle vs Adamson game photo gallery

The Archers once again broke the hearts of the Falcons, this time with a 70-69 escape act in the return of UAAP Season 79 men’s basketball tournament in the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

“Lucky shot na lang siguro yun. Instinct na ang gumana,” described Vosotros after the game.

Prior to Vosotros’ shot, the Archers seemed to be groomed for the win as they led by a high of seven, 54-47 in the fourth quarter.

To chop that lead, spot shooter Harry Petilos swished two three-point shots as the Falcons were only down by one, 53-54, at the seven-minute mark.

It was a see-saw battle since as the Archers were paced by Van Opstal, Revilla, and Jeron Teng while the Falcons were lifted by Rodney Brondial, who scored nine of his game-high 19 points in the quarter including two swished free throws at the 42-second mark to tie the game at 62-62. Brondial also grabbed 23 boards, which tied UE’s Charles Mammie’s season record in rebounds.

In the ensuing plays, Van Opstal missed a hook shot and subsequently, the Falcons missed two three-point attempts from Petilos and Trollano, and a putback by Brondial, which rimmed out off the board.

“We’re not doing well defensively and offensively, we’re doing so-so. But it’s good for the team that we’re still managing to execute in the end game,” commented La Salle head coach Juno Sauler.

With the win, the Archers lie idly at fifth place with a 4-4 record while the Falcons drop to seventh place with two wins and five losses.