EcoOil-La Salle made short work of Wangs Basketball @27 Striker-Letran, winning 102-79 and securing its place in the semifinals of the 2023 PBA D-League Aspirants’ Cup at the Ynares Arena in Pasig City.
Kevin Quiambao scored 13 points, pulled down five rebounds, and had three steals in the first half. He orchestrated La Salle’s breakaway and dashed whatever hopes the Knights had of reaching the Final Four via the shorter route.
The reigning champs finished the elimination round with a 5-1 record. They join semifinalist-in-waiting Marinerong Pilipino-San San Beda, which also ended its campaign with a similar record.
La Salle quickly made an impression by pulling ahead early, 21-7. Letran responded and pulled within six. But the Archers – with Quiambao, Mark Nonoy, and Joaqui Manuel leading the charge – unleashed a 30-13 run.
That gave them a commanding 55-32 advantage at halftime. And Letran never recovered.
However, all is not lost for the Knights. Letran finished the elimination round tied with University of Perpetual Help System-Delta and Centro Escolar University, both with similar 3-3 records. In the process, Letran earned a twice-to-beat advantage in the quarterfinals, along with the Altas, based on a superior quotient.
Computation of games involving the three squads ranked the Altas as the third seed with a 1.149 quotient, followed by the Knights (0.961), and the Scorpions (0.921).
The quarterfinals will start on Tuesday at the Paco Arena in Manila, with Perpetual taking on the PSP Gymers at 2:00 PM and Letran facing CEU at 4:00 PM.
