Coming off a loss to archrival Ateneo de Manila University seven days ago, De La Salle University put on an offensive showcase against University of Santo Tomas, taking a wire-to-wire 112-83 win to return to the win column of the UAAP Season 84 5-on-5 basketball tournament, Tuesday at the SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.
An offensive clinic was what the Green Archers showed as their 112 points was the most scored by a UAAP team since La Salle’s 115-109 win over National University back on September 16, 2017.
All in all, La Salle shot an impressive 58.3-percent from the field while going 19-of-29 from the foul stripe. Majority of the Green Archers’ points came from the paint.
Deschon Winston was at the forefront of La Salle’s attack, scoring 33 points on 14-of-19 shooting from the field. The Central Michigan University product’s scoring output matched the season-high set by RJ Abarrientos back on April 2 during Far Eastern University’s game against National University.
Winston also became the first Green Archer to break the 30-point barrier since Jamie Malonzo’s 34 points against Adamson back on October 30, 2019.
“It was a total team effort for us today” said La Salle mentor Derrick Pumaren. “We were able to execute. Deschon really shot well today. The only guy who was able to stop him was me because I took him out.”
The Green Archers’ hot start to the contest proved to be a mountain too steep for the Growling Tigers. A 16-0 run was capped off by Evan Nelle’s jumper as La Salle raced towards a 27-8 cushion with 2:26 left in the first quarter.
Winston then exploded in the third quarter with 19 points and it was a jump shot of his that extended the Green Archers’ separation to 80-54 in the third period.
Things got chippy early in the final frame as frustration mounted for the Growling Tigers.
A couple of unsportsmanlike fouls were called on Evan Nelle and Joshua Fontanilla while UST was assessed with two technical fouls for improper bench decorum.
Still, the Green Archers surged, growing their lead to as high as 33 points as they cruised to a 6-3 record to remain at solo third.
Justine Baltazar also had an excellent all-around game with 17 points, seven rebounds, seven assists, two steals, and a block while Nelle went 5-of-5 from the field (4-of-4 from deep) for 16 points to go with six assists and two steals.
Rookie Michael Phillips was a rebound shy of a double-double, tallying 15 points and nine rebounds, while 26-year-old Kurt Lojera got 10 points and six assists.
La Salle senior Joaqui Manuel served a one-game suspension in the contest after the unsportsmanlike foul criteria 2 he committed against Ateneo De Manila University’s Angelo Kouame last April 12. According to the FIBA rulebook, UF C2 are fouls that are “excessive, hard contact caused by a player in an effort to play the ball or an opponent.”
UST, meanwhile, fell to 3-6 to remain at fifth-sixth with FEU.
Rookie captain Paul Manalang and transferee Bryan Santos got 14 and 13 points, respectively, for the Growling Tigers with the latter also grabbing seven rebounds.
Sherwin Concepcion got 12 points while Nic Cabanero added 11 points, seven rebounds, and two assists.
Fontanilla had a horrid game with eight points on 1-of-8 shooting with five turnovers.
Both schools shall next play on Thursday at the SM MOA Arena. La Salle (6-3) goes up against University of the East at 7:00 PM while UST (3-6) takes on Ateneo de Manila University at 10:00 AM.
The Scores:
DLSU 112 – Winston 33, Baltazar 17, Nelle 16, M. Phillips 15, Lojera 10, Nonoy 5, Cuajao 5, Galman 5, Escandor 2, B. Phillips 2, Cu 2, Lim 0, Nwankwo 0, Turco 0.
UST 83 — Manalang 14, Santos 13, Concepcion 12, Cabanero 11, Ando 10, Fontanilla 8, Garing 6, Gomez de Liano 4, Samudio 3, Manaytay 2, Gesalem 0, Mantua 0, Yongco 0, Pangilinan 0, Herrera 0.
Quarterscores: 36-21, 58-46, 86-61, 112-83.
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