Lasalista.com

After learning that the UAAP commissioner had recommended the rejection of the protest that the Green Archers had filed against the Blue Eagles, the Archers showed that they have indeed moved on by beating out the NU Bulldogs and claiming a firm grip as second place in the standings after the first round of eliminations. The Green Archer finished the first round with a 5-2 record, losing to only the UE Red Warriors and the Ateneo Blue Eagles simultaneously before winning their last 2 games of the round. Their seventh and final game of the first round did not come in a golden spoon however, as the Archers had to fight off the pesky Bulldogs to pull off a 85-81 win.

The game looked to be a route as the Archers took an early 12 point lead in the 1st quarter, but the NU Bulldogs showed the tenacity of their moniker, accompanied by 6 Green Archer turnovers in the quarter, and battled right back to steal a 1 point lead as the 1st quarter finished. The Green Archers got their heads back in the game after that, led by Bader Malabes’ 10 points in the second quarter, and led most of the game; although the Bulldogs kept things close as they hung on and hovered around being down only by 2 to 3 possessions throughout the entire game. In the final minutes of the game, the Bulldogs were looking to finally jump ahead and steal the victory from the Archers after Jahnke tied the ball game 75-75 with a go-ahead 3 pointer; until the Bahrain Bomber, Bader Malabes, dropped a crucial bomb of his own from beyond the arc with a little over 2 minutes left in the game to put the Green Archers further up and out of reach.

The De La Salle Green Archers were led by Bader Malabes, as the much hyped-about player finally had his breakout game after slumping through most of the season, with 18 points and 4 rebounds. The rookie, James Mangahas, delivered consistency once again as he posted another double-double for the Green Archers with 11 points and 10 rebounds. Pocholo Villanueva fouled out with 11 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 assists. Rico Maierhofer saw only 10 minutes of action due to characteristic early foul trouble, and finished with only 8 points and 3 rebounds. The Archers turned the ball over 17 times, way over their league-best average of 13 turnovers per game; but had a very balanced scoring output as 10 Archers scored at least 4 points, with 4 players scoring in double figures.

For the Bulldogs, Jonathan Fernandez had a fiery shooting stroke once more as he finished with 24 points and 7 rebounds.  Edwin Asoro did not display his usual dominant self, but played will nevertheless with 13 points, 8 rebounds, 2 blocks, and 5 steals.

In the second game, the Ateneo Blue Eagles were thumped late by the UST Growling Tigers, 87-74. Jervy Cruz had another monster performance for the Tigers, with 19 points and 21 rebounds; and Khasim Mirza led the scoring with 25 points while shooting 6/7 from beyond the arc. The loss for the Eagles pulled them down from second place to a tie for third place with the Tigers; which gave way for the Archers to snatch second place with their earlier victory.

uaap, uaap results, dlsu, la salle, green archers