Warriors end two-game slide, maul Maroons in UAAP 71

MANILA, Philippines – The UE Red Warriors ended its mini slump getting back to the win column after an 87-58 demolition of the UP Fighting Maroons in the UAAP men’s basketball tournament Thursday at the PhilSports Arena in Pasig City. Hans Thiele stepped up from his usual seven points per game average to lead the Red Warriors’ scoring with 15 points, five rebounds, two blocks, a steal and an assist. The win improved UE’s standing to 3-2 and importantly it snapped their two-game slide. UE’s last win was against the NU Bulldogs, 80-69, on July 10. The Warriors suffered back-to-back setbacks after that, a 64-58 loss to the Ateneo Blue Eagles and a shocking 66-64 decision against the Adamson Falcons. UP dropped to 1-4 and has lost its fourth straight game after an impressive 86-72 win against the Bulldogs on July 6. From a comfortable 27-12 tally, after the opening quarter, the Red Warrior’s lead ballooned further at the start of the second period. A Gino Etrone three-pointer triggered a 17-1 UE run to break the game wide open. UE backed up that torrid shooting with an air-tight defense where they held UP scoreless for almost seven minutes. That UE breakaway reduced UP’s chances to mount a serious come back. UP only scored its first field goal with just a little over three minutes left in the quarter courtesy of a Martin Reyes three-pointer. At the half, UE is already up by 26 as they limited UP to a season-low eight points. The Fighting Maroons were deprived of getting good looks at the basket, as reflected in the halftime field goals tally where they shot a dismal 24 percent shooting from the field going 8-of-33 against the Warriors’ 16-of-32 performance for a decent 50 percent output. The Red Warriors led as much as 40 points twice in the final quarter, heeding coach Dindo Pumaren’s command “not to relax and to stay-all out “ in the game. Earlier, The La Salle Green Archers took sole possession of second place after a 76-61 thrashing of an upset conscious Adamson Falcons. The Archers improved to 4-1 behind archrival Ateneo Blue Eagles, which have yet to lose after four games. The loss was the third in five games for the Falcons, who were coming off a morale-boosting 66-64 win over the UE Red Warriors on Sunday. JV Casio scattered 18 points behind an 8-of-11 shooting from the field to pace the Archers’ scoring. He also had four rebounds, five assists and two steals. Bader Malabes added 10 points, an assist and two steals also for the Archers. – Andrew Lanot, GMANews.TV