THERE’S just no stopping De La Salle. And it gets scarier every time the Green Archers hit the court.
La Salle handed University of Santo Tomas (UST) a 43-point beatdown, 99-53, to secure the first twice-to-beat advantage in the Final Four of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines Season 79 men’s basketball tournament on Sunday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
After crushing National University (NU), 113-88, in their last match, the Green Archers rolled to an easy 11th straight win to stay on top and stay on course of their goal to bring the title back to Taft since it last won the championship two years ago.
“We just want to play like a team and play defense all-game-long. We want to play hard,” said La Salle Assistant Coach Paolo Sauler, who attended the postgame interview in lieu of the elusive Head Coach Aldin Ayo.
Ben Mbala netted his 11th straight double-double game with 21 points and 15 rebounds and added five blocks to lead the Green Archers, while Jeron Teng added 16 markers and four boards. Rookie Justine Baltazar also had a solid game for La Salle, as he chipped in 10 points and 12 rebounds.
The 43-point winning margin was the most since the stats were computerized in 2003. The last time a team was heavily beaten was when the Bulldogs trounced University of the East, 91-51, in Season 74.
Despite the rout, Sauler still wanted the players to focus on winning the crown as they booked the first ticket to the semis.
“We’re taking this one game at a time. We haven’t achieved anything. I want the boys to be hungry,” Sauler added.
The Green Archer just pulled the game away right from the start, as Teng lifted his team to a fiery start with 10 points in the first quarter, weathering the Growling Tigers’ attack from Louie Vigil en route to a 19-15 finish in the opening frame.
Things went just the same in the second canto as Mbala anchored the 28-6 output before the half to lead by a whopping 45-23.
Marvin Lee drained a triple with three minutes remaining in the third period to stop the bleeding at 60-30, but Mbala and Teng conspired for an onslaught in the final 10 minutes to seal the match.
Vigil had 18 points on top of seven boards to lead UST, but got little help from the bench as Henri Subido and Jon Sheriff only contributed nine and six markers, respectively. The Growling Tigers fell to 3-8 win-loss record.
The Green Archers shot the ball well at 46 percent, well above the dismal 27-percent showing of the Growling Tigers. La Salle also gave UST a nightmare in the rebounding department, 66-35.
“We must start well in the next game. I think the team should stick to the game plan and play good defense,” La Salle guard Thomas Torres said.
The Green Archers also routed UST in their first meeting, 100-62.
A semis appearance looks bleak for the Growling Tigers, as they failed to sustain their momentum-building 73-69 win over NU that snapped their five-game losing streak.
Image credits: Stephanie Tumampos