MANILA – De La Salle University Green Archers survived a late outburst by Rhenz Abando and defeated University of Santo Tomas Growling Tigers, 80-79, in UAAP Season 82 men’s seniors basketball at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Holding to an 80-71 lead with a minute left on Wednesday, Abando uncorked two straight triples to cut the deficit to 80-77.
Abando was able to steal the ball away and stepped on the line on his outside hit that cut the deficit to 80-79 with just a second left.
It was a big victory for the Green Archers. They kept themselves in the Final Four race after leveling its standing to 6-6.
The Growling Tigers, meanwhile, dropped to a 7-6 win-loss record.
“As you know, the standings are really tight. We’re happy that we kind of responded well, the players responded with urgency today,” said Green Archers head coach Gian Nazario.
Jamie Malonzo stepped up with his 23 points on a 3-of-4 three-point shooting, to go along with seven rebounds, three steals, and two assists.
Brandon Bates unleashed his finest performance to date with 10 points, 15 boards, and two blocks.
The Green Archers used a 26-point third period eruption to flip the game from a 44-37 halftime affair to a 63-54 advantage late in the canto and seize control of the matchup against the Tigers.
It build its biggest lead at 69-57 on Malonzo’s putback slam but the Tigers showed its resiliency, forcing stops and crawling back late, yet Abando stepped on the line on his gutsy long bomb, which could have knotted the score at 80 all.
Abando wound up with 19 points and four rebounds, as Soulemane Chabi Yo tallied double-double 17 points and 17 boards in the Tigers’ defeat./PN
