Gilas Pilipinas player Mason Amos and Russel Ogana combined for four triples in the final period as De La Salle University secured a hard-fought 58-55 victory over UCAL champion Centro Escolar University, inching closer to earning the No. 1 seed in the playoffs of the PGFlex Invitational Basketball Tournament on Monday at the Paco Arena in Manila.
Just a day after coming off the bench in Gilas Pilipinas’ dominant 93-54 win over Hong Kong in the FIBA Asia Cup 2025 qualifier, Amos opened the fourth quarter with a three-pointer to put La Salle ahead, 43-42.
Ogana then took over with a series of clutch plays to complete the team’s comeback win.
Amos finished with 15 points, seven rebounds, and an assist in nearly 27 minutes of play.
His performance helped the Taft-based squad improve to 6-1 in the pre-season tournament, which is also presented by Quintana.
CEU, which had suffered a 73-63 loss to La Salle in the first phase of the eliminations, finished third with a 4-4 record.
However, it was Ogana’s day as he scored 11 of his 17 points in the fourth quarter.
His final basket, a floating jumper, gave the Archers a 58-53 lead with just under a minute left.
While the Archers continued to miss the crafty guard Kean Baclaan, Jacob Cortez stepped up, masterfully orchestrating the team’s offense.
The former San Beda Red Lion finished with 13 points and seven assists.
In other games, Immaculada Concepcion College and Olivarez College boosted their bids for the fourth and final semifinal spot with victories that lifted their records to 4-4 and 3-5, respectively.
ICC, led by Edrian Mark Ramirez’s 23 points, outlasted the MCU Supremos, 85-80.
Meanwhile, the Olivarez Sea Lions used a balanced attack, anchored by Gianluca Spinosa (15 points, 9 rebounds), Cristian Vergara (13 points, 5 rebounds), and Monsour Proel (12 points), to eke out a 67-62 win over the Falcons.
