Archers roll past Tigers

MANILA, Philippines — After a stumble against University of the East, reigning champion La Salle made it two wins in a row by taming Santo Tomas, 88-67, to firm up hold of second spot in the UAAP Season 87 men’s basketball tournament at the Smart Araneta Coliseum yesterday.

Mike Phillips harvested 12 points and 18 rebounds to lead five players in double digits as the Archers improved to 4-1 to stay in coattails of host University of the Philippines (5-0) ahead of their rematch next weekend.

Reigning MVP Kevin Quiambao had 10 points, along with six rebounds and four assists with Vhoris Marasigan (11), Raven Gonzales (10) and JC Macalalag (10) putting in their shares as La Salle scored its 15th straight win against Santo Tomas since 2016.

“The key for us was really trying to outwork them. We know what they’re capable of, we know how well coached that team is, and sabi nga namin, our goal right now is to just outwork UST,” said coach Topex Robinson as La Salle outclassed its foe in rebounds (56-29) and assists (26-15).

La Salle bowed to UE, 75-71, last week before getting back on track with a 68-62 decision over Far Eastern U.

It was a struggle versus the Tams and almost the same against Santo Tomas – at least in the first quarter.

Trapped in the Tigers’ den with an 8-18 deficit in the opening salvo, the Archers restored order with a searing 15-0 run bridging the next two quarters to seize the upperhand at 23-18.

With momentum on its side, La Salle slowly but surely erected a comfortable gap after three quarters and pretty much took the fight out of Santo Tomas with an 8-0 run to start the fourth.

Overall, the Archers outscored the Tigers, 27-15, in a knockout fourth-quarter blow, heading home with a 21-point win.

Nic Cabañero had 16 points while Forthksy Padrigao added 15 but Santo Tomas, despite its massive improvement, still could not get over the La Salle hump to slide to 3-2 for joint spot at fourth with red-hot UE.

In women’s basketball, Ateneo (3-2) clipped Far Eastern U (1-5), 69-53, while reigning champion Santo Tomas (4-1) bounced back with a 76-68 win over La Salle (1-5) after losing to rival NU (6-0).