MANILA – De La Salle University Green Archers snapped its five-year losing skid over rival Ateneo de Manila University Blue Eagles with an 83-78 beating in the UAAP Season 85 men’s basketball on Sunday night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Deschon Winston top-scored with 25 points, all coming from second quarter onwards, to go with six assists, five rebounds and two steals as the Green Archers scored back-to-back wins for a 2-1 slate.
Evan Nelle chipped in 10 markers, including two outside conversions, while Raven Cortez had a solid eight points contribution as the Green Archers notched its first win over the Blue Eagles since November 2017.
The Green Archers had a flat start and were down by as much as 12 points in the opening quarter before turning things around with a 13-0 blast to start the second canto to take a 31-28 lead.
The Blue Eagles were quick to restore order as they created separation from the Green Archers behind inside hits by Angelo Kouame and Kai Balunggay but DLSU leaned on Winston to cut the deficit to 46-47 at the half.
Both teams had tight exchange in the third quarter with the Blue Eagles taking a slim lead before the Green Archers rallied back and took a 64-62 lead after three quarters following a conversion by Earl Abadam.
The Blue Eagles started the fourth quarter strong as they took a slim lead after a three-pointer by rookie Matthew Garcia but seven straight points by Nelle knotted the score at 72-all.
The Green Archers went on a spurt on free throws by Winston and Abadam and a putback by Michael Phillips for a 77-72 advantage. The Blue Eagles cut it to 74-77 but Winston unloaded four more points for an 81-76 edge.
The Blue Eagles made its last push at 78-81 on an inside attack by Ballungay but two free throws by Nelle widened the Green Archers’ advantage to 83-78 with 10 seconds remaining.
Kouame finished with double-double 22 points, 12 rebounds and four blocks, Ballungay also had a double-double 19 points and 10 rebounds as the Blue Eagles dropped to a tie with the Green Archers at 2-1.
BOX SCORE:
DLSU 83 – Winston 25, Nelle 10, Cortez 8, Quiambao 7, Abadam 7, M. Phillips 6, Austria 6, B. Phillips 6, Estacio 5, Nwankwo 3, Nonoy 0, Manuel 0.
ATENEO 78 – Kouame 22, Ballungay 19, Andrade 8, Ildefonso 7, Padrigao 7, Gomez 5, Lazaro 4, Garcia 3, Chiu 2, Koon 1, Daves 0, Quitevis 0.
Quarterscores: 18-28, 46-47, 64-62, 83-78./PN
