For the second straight game, the backcourt tandem of Kent Salado and Donald Gumaru stepped up for High Chief Jio Jalalon in making the big baskets down the stretch in Arellano University’s 75-61 win over the University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons Friday afternoon at the Filoil Flying V Centre in San Juan City.
Salado stuffed the statsheets once more with 11 points, seven rebounds, five assists, and a steal in 26 minutes of action. Senior guard Gumaru added 12 markers, five boards, and three assists while also knocking down a triple.
“Si Kent talaga yung second guard. Yung iba dun puwede mag-guard but Kent gives us stability,” Arellano head coach Jerry Condinera said about his sophomore guard. “Napupulsuhan niya yung game and he is fundamentally-equipped. Mas maganda yung guard skills niya that’s why we always stick with him.”
After a slow start, the Chiefs were able to break away in the second frame in outscoring the Fighting Maroons 23-12 to gain a 39-27 halftime lead.
“Siguro dahil sa status namin ngayon na nakapasok na kami sa quarterfinals and from what I’ve watched in the UAAP, UP always starts strong,” Condinera said about the game.
The Chiefs though failed to close-out the third frame strong as four free throws by Dave Moralde and a triple by Diego Dario cut the once double-digit lead to just six, 52-46, entering the final frame.
After exchanging baskets early in the fourth period, Arellano was able to go on a 10-2 rally sparked by an unsportsmanlike foul called on Kyles Lao against Salado at the 5:34 mark of the game. The rally was capped by a great find by Salado on Meca with 2:54 remaining that gave the Chiefs a game-high 15 point lead, 71-56. Botched layups by the Maroons spelled the doom for State U to close out the game.
“Hindi rin kami naging aggressive from the start. Unti-unti na lang namin tinrabahao,” Condinera added.
Arellano big man Allen Enriquez continued his spectacular play with nine points, on 3-for-5 shooting from the field and 3-for-3 from the stripe, and grabbed five boards. Moreover, Arellano outrebounded UP, 57-49, that led to a 16-9 second chance point advantage.
For the Maroons, Dave Moralde scored a game-high 15 points. Paul Desiderio added 11 points and eight boards in the loss. Andre Harris grabbed a game-high 17 rebounds.
The Arellano Chiefs (A, 5-1), who have clinched a quarterfinals berth in the tournament, will play their final game in the elimination round on Sunday, June 5 against the National University Bulldogs. On the other hand, the UP Fighting Maroons (A, 2-3) will need to beat the same team on Thursday, June 2 at 11:15am.
The Scores:
AU (75) – Gumaru 12, Salado 11, Enriquez 9, Nicholls 9, Meca 7, Flores 7, Alcoriza 6, Holts 4, Ongolo 3, Aguilar 2, Gupilan 2, Abanes 2, Viloria 1, Rivera 0
UP (61) – Moralde 15, Desiderio 11, Dario 10, Harris 6, Webb 5, Lao 4, Battad 4, Asilum 2, Longa 2, Vito 2, Ong 0, Abarcar 0, Espanola 0
Quarterscores: 16-15, 39-27, 52-46, 75-61
