UAAP: Maroons give Archers early scare, but DLSU escapes with the win

(Updated 4:03pm) The De La Salle University Green Archers got a huge challenge from a University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons team determined to give new head coach Rey Madrid a win in his coaching debut. However, DLSU still managed to prevail thanks to a huge scoring binge between the last two quarters, en route to a 85-63 triumph, Saturday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

The Archers improved to 6-4, creating more separation between them and the 4-4 UST Growling Tigers, while UP, which let go of head coach Ricky Dandan earlier in the week, stayed winless after nine outings.  DLSU is also perfect so far in the second round with three wins.

[Review the play-by-play of this game here]

"We shot better in the second half," said DLSU head coach Juno Sauler. "[I just] told them to play harder, challenge the shots of UP."

La Salle got off to a red-hot start, surging to an 8-2 beginning, but the UP offense woke up halfway into the first period, and a Henri Asilum triple, followed by a lay-in from Raul Soyud, brought the Fighting Maroons to within one, 19-18, with two minutes left in the initial period.

Jeron Teng took it upon himself to create some separation, scoring twice, 23-18, but another Xavier School product, Kyles Lao, provided the final points of the quarter with two free throws, to keep UP within range, 23-20.

La Salle's offense suddenly fell into a stupor come the second quarter, as they managed just one field goal in the initial five minutes. That allowed the backcourt of former Green Archer Joseph Marata and Asilum to run wild, powering in a 16-3 run for a 36-29 advantage, 4:59 before the halftime break.

UP couldn't keep up the pace though, as they allowed DLSU to get within four, 39-35, 1:25 on the clock. Martin Pascual capped the half though with a triple right before the buzzer, swelling State U's advantage back to seven at the intermission, 42-35.

After two quarters, hot shooting kept the Maroons on top, as they hit a 47 percent clip, compared to 32 percent for the Archers. DLSU had a 14-4 advantage on the offensive glass versus their foes, but they just weren't converting on the extra scoring opportunities.

Norbert Torres scored five of DLSU's first nine points, as they closed to within one, 44-43, 6:29 left in the third. A put-back by former La Salle prospect Andrew Harris created some breathing room, but a trey from Vosotros knotted the game at 46-all, 5:29 remaining in the period.

The two teams traded shots back-and-forth, with an Arnold Van Opstal floater knotting the game again, 54-all. Kyles Lao temporarily put UP up ahead once more, 56-54, but DLSU took charge of the game, using a 14-0 run to bridge the final two periods and take a 68-56 lead, early in the fourth.

Six straight from the Archers gave them their biggest lead of the game to that point at 76-60, 4:43 left. Asilum connected on a triple with time winding down, but he cramped up upon landing, forcing UP to sub him out.

Unwilling to step off of the gas pedal, DLSU uncorked eight straight before they began subbing out their starters with a minute left in the game, with the final result no longer in doubt.

Jason Perkins led the way for DLSU with 19 points and 16 rebounds. Fellow big man Norbert Torres added 16 markers and 14 boards, while Almond Vosotros fired in 16 as well and seven assists.

UP was led by Henri Asilum, who nailed 4-of-5 triples on the way to 18 points. Raul Soyud put together a double-double of 11 points and 16 rebounds, while Joseph Marata scored 11 despite missing all seven of his three-point attempts.

After logging 11 assists in the first half, UP managed none in the second, as their panic resulted in a lot of one-on-one attempts. The Maroons were also stymied in transition, with no fast break attempts, let alone points. - AMD, GMA News



The scores:

DLSU 85 - Perkins 19, Vosotros 16, N. Torres 16, Teng 12, Van Opstal 7, Revilla 6, Montalbo 5, Tampus 4, T. Torres 0, Salem 0

UP 63 - Asilum 18, Soyud 11, Marata 11, Wong 6, Lao 6, Harris 4, Desiderio 4, Pascual 3, Suarez 0, Paras 0, Gingerich 0, Gallarza 0, Amar 0

Quarter scores: 23-20, 35-42, 61-56, 85-63