In a game that was sloppy to say the least, the De La Salle University Green Archers were able to escape the Far Eastern University Tamaraws, taking a 75-73 victory, Wednesday evening at the SMART-Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City.
“Muntik pa. I think a hundred percent of the time we just have to stick to the system. Isang beses, dalawang beses na isang player na hindi mag-stick sa system, talagang nagkakaroon siya ng impact agad eh,” lamented DLSU assistant coach Miggy Solitaria.
The win lifted La Salle back to solo second with a 6-2 record, while dropping FEU to a tie with the UP Fighting Maroons at 2-2.
And it was Ricci Rivero who led La Salle, continuing his heater that started in their loss to Ateneo. The sophomore finished with 20 points on an excellent 9-for-15 shooting clip to go along with four assists and a whopping five steals.
“Yun nga like what coach Miggy said, sabi ng coaches namin just stick to the system. We get our offense thru defense talaga. Lahat ng nagawa ko from defense siya, from steal or defensive rebound,” added Ricci.
But it was another lackadaisical outing for the defending champions, as La Salle went a horrid 11-for-24 from the foul stripe while uncharacteristically being out-rebounded by FEU, 38-49. These factors kept the erroneous Tamaraws in the game up to the last second.
Up 67-65 with four minutes remaining, La Salle were fortunate that Jollo Go heated up, scoring five straight points to give the Green Archers a seven point cushion.
Jollo Go finished with 14 markers, spiked by four triples.
“Siguro part din yun, yun nga, sa game na yun. Every game naman, yung confidence na binibigay sa akin ng coaches and teammates ko, lagi ko lang iniisip na pinapayagan naman ako if open ako, bakit ‘di ko itira? So pag-open ako, tinira ko na,” said Go.
FEU skipper Ken Tuffin knocked down a triple but was answered right back by a Ben Mbala putback. After a bevy of errors, Hubert Cani was able to redeem himself by knocking down a corner triple with 1:20 left to cut the lead to just a solitary point.
But Cani could not save himself, as Ricci Rivero easily pickpocketed him in next FEU possession. Misses on the foul stripe by Ricci Rivero with 12 ticks left led to a dunk by Prince Orizu.
Ricci Rivero had a chance to seal the win but split his free throws and was called for a violation after trying to intentionally miss the second. Fortunately for La Salle, Ron Dennison’s inbound went straight to the hands of Caracut to close out the game.
UAAP leading scorer Ben Mbala finished with 18 points and 17 rebounds. However, the Cameroonian student-athlete once again struggled from the field, going just 5-for-16.
Tuffin paced FEU with 14 points, while Cani and Dennison chipped in 13 and 10 markers each. As a team though, the Tamaraws had a hard time keeping the ball, committing 29 turnovers.
La Salle will next face one of their first round tormentors, the University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons, on Sunday, October 14, at 4:00pm. FEU, on the other hand, take on the hapless University of Santo Tomas Growling Tigers on the same day at 12:00nn. Both games will be played at the Filoil Flying V Centre in San Juan City.
The Scores:
DLSU (75) – Rivero R. 20, Mbala 18, Go 14, Rivero P. 8, Caracut 7, Santillan 3, Tratter 3, Montalbo 2, Gonzales 0, Paraiso 0.
FEU (73) – Tuffin 14, Cani 13, Dennison 10, Parker 9, Eboña 8. Escoto 7, Orizu 7, Iñigo 3, Ramirez 2, Stockton 0, Trinidad 0, Comboy 0.
Quarterscores: 18-13, 39-35, 62-56, 75-73
