Kirby Mongcopa finished off a perfect Janrey Pasaol setup, draining the go-ahead layup that kept Far Eastern University alive in the UAAP Season 88 Men’s Basketball Final Four race with an 84-83 win over De La Salle University on Sunday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The Green Archers earned three consecutive golden opportunities to extend their 83-82 lead thanks to the hustle of Mike Phillips, who grabbed two late offensive rebounds.
Jacob Cortez missed the first two attempts, but La Salle retained possession after another offensive board by Phillips.
The third try went to EJ Gollena, who misfired again before Mo Konateh finally secured the rebound for the Tamaraws. He passed it to Janrey Pasaol at halfcourt, who then found Mongcopa open in the paint for the lead with 26.2 seconds remaining.
Trying to regain the lead, Cortez drove to the basket, but Mongcopa shone again on the other end, blocking the Green Archers guard’s shot with 15 seconds left. FEU, however, turned the ball over, giving La Salle one last chance.
The ball found its way to JC Macalalag in the left corner, who hoisted a triple that missed, handing FEU the win.
The Tamaraws improve to 5-7, remaining in seventh place but just a game and a half behind fourth-running La Salle, which fell to 6-5.
(C) UAAP Season 88 Media Team
“We are super grateful to just be in this stage and be able to be in this place,” said Tamaraws head coach Sean Chambers.
“We also wanna say La Salle is a championship team, and when I left the house today, I kept saying to myself we have to beat one of the big teams this tournament in order for us to finally arrive.”
It was another down-to-the-wire finish between the two teams, after La Salle narrowly escaped FEU in their first-round matchup, 74-72.
The Tamaraws led by as much as 46-32 late in the second quarter, but the Green Archers rallied in the third through JC Macalalag, Luis Pablo, and Phillips, entering the fourth down by just three, 64-67.
“Grabe rin ‘yung preparation namin sa practice. Si Coach Sean, nakita namin sa practice na sobrang focused niya and ‘yung galit niya sa amin pinapakita niya sa amin na kaya namin. Binigay lang namin ang best namin,” said rookie Mongcopa, who finished with 10 points, 10 rebounds, seven assists, one steal, and one block.
Pasaol led FEU with 17 points and seven assists, while Konateh added 14 points and nine rebounds.
Jorick Bautista contributed 12 points — all in the second half — as Jedric Daa added 10 points and six rebounds in the crucial victory.
FEU can no longer afford a loss, aiming to sweep its last two matches against University of the East on Saturday and University of Santo Tomas on Nov. 26, both at the Big Dome, for a chance to enter the postseason.
(C) UAAP Season 88 Media Team
Earl Abadam paced the Green Archers with 18 points, three rebounds, and three assists, while Macalalag added 14 points and five assists.
Phillips recorded 14 points and 19 rebounds, while Pablo — who put La Salle up 83-82 with back-to-back baskets late — finished with 11 points.
Cortez struggled despite tallying 10 points, six assists, three rebounds, and three steals, shooting just 2-of-14 from the field.
La Salle looks to break out of its two-game skid when it faces Adamson University on Wednesday at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.
The Scores:
FEU (84) – Pasaol 17, Konateh 14, Bautista 12, Mongcopa 10, Daa 10, Felipe 9, Montemayor 7, Owens 5, Ona 0, Jones 0.
DLSU (83) – Abadam 18, Macalalag 14, Phillips 14, Pablo 11, Cortez 10, Nwankwo 4, Gollena 4, Dungo 4, Quines 2, Melencio 2.
Quarterscores: 16-19, 46-36, 67-64, 84-83
