Lastimosa misses game-winner as UP survives Adamson for 4th straight win

MANILA, Philippines – Jerom Lastimosa failed to convert on a game-winning three-pointer as the UP Fighting Maroons survived the Adamson Soaring Falcons, 73-71, in the UAAP Season 84 men’s basketball tournament on Tuesday, April 5 at the Mall of Asia Arena.

With the Soaring Falcons trailing by only 2 points in the dying seconds of the ball game, Lastimosa missed on his pull-up triple in transition as Adamson dropped its third straight outing and moved down to a 1-4 slate.

UAAP | FINAL:

Count on UP and Adamson to always bring a tension-filled finish in the UAAP!

Jerom Lastimosa airballs the game-winning triple as the Maroons escape the Falcons, 73-71!#UAAPSeason84 pic.twitter.com/qENFUZCWAG
— Rappler Sports (@RapplerSports) April 5, 2022

Four players scored in double figures for the Fighting Maroons, but it was Zav Lucero who led the way with 20 points, to go along with 5 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 steals.

Malick Diouf added a double-double of 16 points and 15 rebounds, while Carl Tamayo and Ricci Rivero tallied 11 and 10 markers respectively for UP, which captured its fourth straight win and improved to 4-1 in the standings – tied with the La Salle Green Archers.

“A win is a win, but you know after this game, definitely we need to work on our defense,” said UP head coach Goldwin Monteverde.

“Our rotations defensively, there were a lot of lapses a while ago,” he added.

After trailing by as many as 11 points, 13-24, early in the second period, the Fighting Maroons’ offense came alive and finished the quarter on a 26-15 run to tie the game at 39-all at halftime.

It was a shootout between both squads all throughout the second half and with Adamson trailing by only 1 point, 62-63, with less than six minutes left in the ball game, UP once again stepped on the gas and went on a crucial 7-2 blast to create some separation over the Soaring Falcons, 70-64.

Lastimosa quickly responded with a basket to cut the margin back to 4, 70-66, but Rivero countered with a three-pointer to put the Fighting Maroons up by 7, 73-66.

The Soaring Falcons then went on a 5-0 swing, capped by a layup by Joshua Yerro, to pull back within 2, 73-71, with just 31 seconds left to play.

Rivero had a chance to ice the game for the Fighting Maroons in the next possession, but missed on his three-point opportunity. Luckily for Rivero and the Fighting Maroons, Lastimosa’s triple also failed to hit the mark as time expired.

Lastimosa topscored for the Soaring Falcons with 16 points, together with 6 rebounds, and 3 assists, while Lenda Douanga had his own double-double of 16 points and 14 rebounds.

Meanwhile, Keith Zaldivar, who was red-hot for Adamson in the first half, contributed 14 points on 4-of-7 shooting from downtown.

UP puts its four-game winning streak on the line against La Salle in a highly anticipated clash on Thursday, April 7, at 10 am, while Adamson collides with the FEU Tamaraws at 7 pm.