The UP Fighting Maroons Women’s Basketball Team (UPWBT) and Men’s Basketball Team (UPMBT) shot down the De La Salle University (DLSU) Green Archers to notch their sixth consecutive win in Season 86 of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) basketball tournament.
The UPWBT prevailed against the Lady Archers, 65-61, on Oct. 18 at the Adamson University (AdU) Gym, while the UPMBT scored a thrilling win, 67-64, against the DLSU Green Archers also on Oct. 18 at the Mall of Asia (MOA) Arena in Pasay City.
The UPWBT, led by rookie sensation Louna Ozar, slipped past the DLSU Lady Archers to maintain its clean slate for the season.
It was a nip-and-tuck affair in the first three quarters of the game as the two teams traded baskets. The UP Fighting Maroons was only down by one point, 49-50, coming into the fourth period.
In the final canto, Ozar and UPWBT came out firing and went on a roll to take the lead, 60-56, with two minutes and 22 seconds to go. The Lady Archers then came within striking distance on two free shots by Betina Binaohan. The UPWBT, however, responded with Christie Bariquit’s spin move and Kaye Pesquera’s triple to secure the victory for the UP Fighting Maroons.
Ozar had another breakout game to lead the UPWBT with 14 points, six assists, four steals, and two rebounds. Marian Domingo also scored 14 points, while Bariquit and Rhea Sanchez added nine points apiece.
Meanwhile, the UPMBT put on a massive scoring in the third quarter and displayed solid defensive stance in the dying seconds of the game to clinch their sixth win for the season.
The UP Fighting Maroons had a flat start and was down by seven points, 21-28, at the end of the first 10 minutes.
The two teams then engaged in a game of runs in the second period. The UPMBT was down by eleven points, 24-35, when rookie Mark Belmonte led the team’s 11-0 blast to level the score, 35-35, with three minutes and eight seconds remaining in the quarter. The DLSU Green Archers then responded with a 12-3 run to close the second frame with a nine-point lead, 47-38.
In the third frame, the UPD-based dribblers played good defense and had a stunning run by scoring 21 points while limiting the DLSU Green Archers’ production to only three points for the entire third quarter. The UPMBT took the upper hand, 59-50, heading into the final canto.
In the payoff period, the DLSU Green Archers fought back and were able to tie the score, 63-63, with a little over two minutes more in the game. In the ensuing play, Gerry Abadiano grabbed an offensive rebound and drained a jumper to give the UP Fighting Maroons a two-point advantage, 65-63, with a minute left to play. Michael Phillips then split his free throws to push the DLSU Green Archers within a point, 64-65, still with 44.3 ticks to go.
The UP Fighting Maroons was then able to burn some time forcing DLSU’s Kevin Quiambao to foul UPMBT’s Reyland Torres to stop the clock. Torres then calmly sunk his two free throws to extend the UP Fighting Maroons’ lead to three, with 2.9 seconds left. The DLSU still had an opportunity to extend the game into overtime in their next possession. Coming from a timeout, Joaqui Manuel’s inbound pass to Quiambao was intercepted by UPMBT’s CJ Cansino as time expired, sealing the victory for the UP Fighting Maroons.
Abadiano paced the UPMBT with 13 points, four rebounds, and two assists. Malick Diouf had another double-double game, scoring 10 points and hauling down 18 rebounds, while Harold Alarcon contributed 10 points and eight rebounds.
Both the UPWBT and UPMBT have 6-0 slates and are on top of their respective team standings.
The UPWBT will shoot for their seventh victory against the Ateneo de Manila University (ADMU) Lady Eagles on Oct. 21, 3 p.m. at the AdU Gym, while the UPMBT will take on the ADMU Blue Eagles on Oct. 22, 4 p.m. at MOA.
