MANILA – Kevin Quiambao drilled a go-ahead triple as De La Salle University Green Archers escaped with a 78-75 victory over National University Bulldogs in the UAAP Season 87 men’s basketball on Sunday night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
With the score tied at 75-all, Quiambao evaded the tight defense of Bulldogs’ guard Steve Nash Enriquez to convert a three-pointer for a 78-75 Green Archers’ lead with 9.8 seconds left.
The Bulldogs, which played without reinforcement Mo Diassana for almost the entire game, still had a chance to force overtime, but Reinhard Jumamoy and Jake Figueroa misfired their three-point attempts.
Quiambao finished with a near triple-double of 22 points, eight rebounds, and seven assists in close to 32 minutes of play as the Green Archers kicked off their title-retention bid on a winning note.
Michael Phillips added a double-double of 12 points and 11 rebounds, while Elaijah Gollena contributed 10 points for DLSU, which were down 71-64 in the fourth period before unloading a huge run to tie the count at 75-all.
P.J. Palacielo tallied a double-double of 15 points and 12 rebounds; Figueroa also submitted 15 markers, while Jolo Manansala contributed 10 markers for the Bulldogs.
Meanwhile, Adamson University Falcons overcame a slow start to defeat Far Eastern University Tamaraws, 59-47, in a low scoring, defensive-oriented encounter.
Royce Mantua, a transferee from the University of Santo Tomas Growling Tigers, led the way with 14 points, including four three-point conversions, as the Falcons opened their campaign on a winning note.
Matthew Montebon added 11 markers and Matty Erolon contributed 10 markers for Adamson, which fell short of reaching the Final Four in UAAP Season 86 with their fifth-place finish.
Holding to a slim 39-35 lead after three quarters, the Falcons broke away in the fourth period behind the trio of Mantua, Montebon, and Erolon to establish a 55-37 lead and never looked back./PN
BOX SCORE:
DLSU 78 – Quiambao 22, Phillips 12, Gollena 10, Abadam 8, Gonzales 6, Ramiro 6, Macalalag 5, David 4, Dungo 2, Aguanne 2, Marasigan 1, Konov 0.
NU 75 – Figueroa 15, Palacielo 15, Manansala 10, Padrones 7, Jumamoy 6, Francisco 6, Enriquez 4, Yu 2, Dela Cruz 2, Garcia 2, Perciano 2, Santiago 2, Lim 2, Diasanna 0.
Quarterscores: 23-18, 45-45, 60-65, 78-75.
