SUMMARY
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MANILA, Philippines – CJ Austria came through in the clutch and delivered the game-winning basket as the La Salle Green Archers finally halted their four-game skid in the UAAP Season 85 men’s basketball tournament with a rousing 81-78 escape over the Adamson Soaring Falcons at the Araneta Coliseum on Thursday, November 17.
With the score knotted at 78-all in the final possession of the game, Austria sank the cold-blooded trey over the outstretched arm of Adamson’s Lenda Douanga right at the buzzer off an extra pass by Ben Phillips.
Austria topscored for the Green Archers, who still missed the services of their high-scoring guard Schonny Winston due to a calf injury, with 16 points, while brothers Ben and Mike Phillips added 14 markers each.
On the other side, Joshua Yerro stepped up for the undermanned Soaring Falcons, who also played without their star point guard Jerom Lastimosa and forward Vince Magbuhos due to injuries, with 18 points, 3 rebounds, and 5 assists.
After a tightly contested affair in the first half, where Adamson only led by a single possession, 42-40, the Soaring Falcons opened the second half with a 6-0 blitz to create some separation over the Green Archers, 48-40, off a jumper by Joaquin Jaymalin with 8:04 to play in the period.
However, the Green Archers managed to climb back in the fourth quarter and stole the lead from Adamson, 75-74, off a booming triple by B. Phillips with just 2:47 minutes remaining.
It was a back-and-forth showdown between the two squads the rest of the way, and with Adamson on the driver’s seat, 78-76, thanks to a layup by Didat Hanapi with 1:04 to play, M. Phillips quickly responded with a tough putback to tie the game once again at 78-78with 41.5 seconds left.
The Soaring Falcons had a chance to regain the lead with 24 seconds remaining in the game, but Douanga’s attempt from the beyond the arc failed to hit the mark as Austria sealed the win in the next play.
Mark Nonoy added 8 points, 5 assists, and 4 steals for the Green Archers, while Kevin Quiambao, who just returned from his Gilas Pilipinas duties, also had 8 points in the victory.
Aaron Flowers backstopped Yerro with 15 points, while Douanga, Hanapi, and Jaymalin all contributed 10 points each for the Soaring Falcons.
La Salle, which improved its record to 4-6, aims to start a winning streak when it challenges top-seed UP Fighting Maroons at 6:30 pm on Sunday, November 20, while Adamson, which dropped to a same 4-6 slate, hopes to get back on the winning track when it faces the UE Red Warriors on the same day at 3 pm.
The Scores
La Salle 81 – Austria 16, M. Phillips 14, B. Phillips 14, Nonoy 8, Quiambao 8, Abadam 6, Nwankwo 6, Nelle 5, Estacio 4, Macalalag 0, Cortez 0, Manuel 0.
Adamson 78 – Yerro 18, Flowers 15, Hanapi 10, Jaymalin 10, Douanga 10, Manzano 6, Sabandal 3, Colonia 2, Barasi 2, Fuentebella 2, Torres 0, Barcelona 0, W. Magbuhos 0.
Quarters: 23-23, 40-42, 57-62, 81-78.
– Rappler.com
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