PCCL: Late comeback puts La Salle Green Archers into the Finals versus SWU Cobras

(Updated 6:07pm) The De La Salle Green Archers crippled the San Beda College Red Lions late, 64-60, to earn the last spot in the Philippine Collegiate Champions League Finals, Thursday, at the FilOil Flying V Arena.

Jeron Teng came to DLSU's rescue in the last two minutes with five points during a 7-0 run, including the go-ahead and-one play to hand the Archers a 60-58 advantage.

With 1:37 left to play, the Red Lions couldn't equalize, and instead came up with two empty possessions, allowing Almond Vosotros to counter with a sidestepping leaner in the lane, 62-58. San Beda called for time with 34 seconds left and set up Art Dela Cruz for a quick two. Almond Vosotros milked the clock for a long two which missed, but grabbed the offensive board and flipped the ball to Jason Perkins for a layup, leaving too little time for San Beda to come back.

Teng scored 23 points, including 15 in the second half, to go with eight rebounds and four assists. Perkins had 15 points and 14 rebounds, while Vosotros tallied 12 points and five rebounds.

"You can see how bad he wants it," said DLSU head coach Juno Sauler afterwards, praising Teng's play when the game was on the line. "Even with four fouls, he'll play well defensively and motivate his teammates. Sometimes he'll take bad shots but that's what I have to live with. I love his mentality in the endgame."

The victory marks the second time DLSU has been in the national finals since their first-place finish in 2008. They finished third back in 2010.

Meanwhile, the Red Lions failed to advance past the Final Four round for the fifth time since 2008, though they have garnered three third-place finishes in the last five years.

[Related: Tallo, SWU Cobras stun DLSU in Final Four]

La Salle will begin a best-of-three series on Monday, against ex-Archer Mac Tallo and the rest of the Southwestern University Cobras, who beat them in overtime at the start of the Final Four round-robin. Earlier on Thursday, the Cobras booked their ticket to the Finals with a win over FEU, 86-71.

[Related: SWU Cobras strike down FEU Tamaraws, enter PCCL Finals]

"They play very strong and very tough. We just need to review and hopefully we can execute on Monday and Tuesday," said Sauler.


The Archers looked to score early in the clock, netting them a 13-6 advantage to start the game. However, San Beda eventually found their bearings, as Baser Amer pulled up for two to cap a 10-4 run in the last minute, 16-17, before Almond Vosotros hit on the other end for a 17-16 DLSU edge.

Scoring was hard to come by in the second quarter, as both teams exerted more energy on defense. The Archers though were frustrated by the alleged lack of fouls going their way. Meanwhile, San Beda powered through the last four minutes via a 7-2 run, including seven points from Ola Adeogun, to lead 27-25 at halftime.

DLSU was much more active in the third quarter, and found more success at the rim. Jeron Teng dropped six points during a 10-0 run, during which Red Lions center Kyle Pascual drew his fourth personal foul, 42-34.

Amer, the only San Beda player with more than one basket in the frame, hit a trey to quell the Archers run with three minutes to play. The third-year floor general added another triple to rally the Red Lions during a 13-4 run, creating a 47-46 margin going into the fourth quarter.

San Beda's frontline wore the Archers down in the paint for much of the fourth, as Adeogun and Art Dela Cruz combined for nine during an 11-6 run, 58-53, before Teng ignited DLSU's comeback.

The Archers went 25-of-66 (37.9 percent) from the field against San Beda's 24-of-67 (35.8 percent) clip.

Art Dela Cruz led San Beda with 19 points and five rebounds. Baser Amer added 15 points and six rebounds, while Ola Adeogun had 14 points and 13 rebounds. - AMD, GMA News


Quarter scoring: 17-16, 25-27, 46-47,64-60