Rookie guard Andrei Caracut went on a scoring splurge to start the fourth quarter, completing a rare four point play followed by another three pointer on the following possession. This gave the DLSU Green Archers a 17 point lead, 58-41, over the UE Red Warriors with 9:25 left to play in their contest at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum.
However, Caracut missed another three pointer in transition on the next possession and things began to go downhill for the Green Archers from that point on. The Red Warriors went on a torrid run and trimmed La Salle’s lead to just four points, 60-56, with 5:20 remaining in the game after Paul Varilla drilled a three pointer, but they would not pull any closer.
Both teams played sloppily down the stretch, combining for just four field goals after Varilla’s gutsy shot, and La Salle held on to take a 71-64 victory. The win was La Salle’s second consecutive after two straight losses and they improved their win-loss record to 3-2 while UE slid to 2-4.
Caracut led La Salle with 16 points, scoring 11 in the second half, and he also tallied five rebounds and three assists. The only blemish in his performance were his nine turnovers, most of which were caused by UE’s relentless full court press.
While Caracut was the catalyst of La Salle’s second half attack, Jeron Teng kept La Salle afloat in the first half, scoring 14 of his 16 points over the first 20 minutes of the game. Teng added seven rebounds and two assists but was also hampered by the Red Warriors’ press as he turned over the ball six times. Larry Muyang stepped up and had 11 points, 11 rebounds, and four blocks for the Green Archers, providing the team with the stellar inside presence that it has sorely lacked this season.
On the other end, starting forward Nick Abanto led the charge for UE with 14 points and eight rebounds while Ronnie de Leon chipped in with 12 points off the bench.
Edgar Charcos scored just eight points, but spearheaded the Red Warriors’ relentless pressure defense together with Emil Palma and Edison Batiller. The trio combined for nine of the Red Warriors’ 12 steals in the contest and effectively delayed La Salle’s half court offense on possessions where they failed to force a turnover.
However, Batiller, who has been functioning as the go-to guy for the Red Warriors this season, had an off-day on offense, missing all nine of his field goals and making just two of four free throws to finish with two points.
Though La Salle took a 17 point advantage midway through the second half, both teams were actually battling back and forth in the early goings. There were four deadlocks and the lead changed hands seven times in the first half. UE’s press led to several easy baskets in the first quarter, but La Salle managed to weather the storm. The Green Archers slowly distanced themselves from the Red Warriors, turning a one point edge after the first quarter into a six point advantage at the half then to a 10 point margin to end the third quarter.
The Green Archers certainly came prepared as head coach Juno Sauler’s squad began to utilize an international basketball rule employed in the UAAP that allows a team to change its inbounders after an opponent converts a basket. This threw off the Red Warriors’ defense, and also confused several fans in attendance, though the press was still moderately effective throughout the contest as UE forced DLSU into 30 turnovers though they themselves also committed 20.
The Red Warriors’ edge was negated, however, as they managed to score just 18 points off turnovers while La Salle managed to record 16.
Up next for the Green Archers are the UST Growling Tigers who are fresh off a comeback victory against the ADMU Blue Eagles. UST currently sports a 4-2 record and this upcoming contest will be of utmost importance for these two teams who are in the thick of the race for a Final Four slot. La Salle and UST will face off on September 30 at 4 pm in the Mall of Asia Arena.
The next match for the Red Warriors will also be against UST but will be played on Wednesday, October 7, at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum. The match will be a must-win for UE as the squad hopes to close out the first round with a win and to keep their Final Four aspirations realistically within reach going into the second half of the season.
The scores:
DLSU 71: Teng 16, Caracut 16, Muyang 11, Torres 8, Torralba 7, Perkins 6, Sargent 5, Navarro 2, Rivero 0, Tratter 0
UE 64: Abanto 14, de Leon 12, Charcos 8, Varilla 7, Palma 5, Penuela 5, Javier 4, Derige 3, Batiller 2, Gagate 2, Yu 2, Manalang 0, Sta Ana 0
Quarter scores: 17-16, 32-26, 51-41, 71-64
