Maroons hold off Warriors for 4th win
MANILA, Philippines — University of the Philippines repulsed a gallant stand from Univesity of the East, 62-56, to gain its third straight win and firm up its hold of second spot in the 82nd UAAP men’s basketball tournament at the Ynares Sports Center in Antipolo yesterday.
Flaunting their experience over a younger Red Warriors squad, the Maroons improved to 4-1 and stayed right behind leader Ateneo (4-0) halfway through the first round.
Reigning MVP Bright Akhuetie posted 16 points, five rebounds, three assists, three steals and a block while holding his own against UE slotman Alex Diakhite to anchor UP’s gritty win.
Javi Gomez de Liano fired two triples for 15 markers while Kobe Paras registered a double-double of 12 points and 10 rebounds for UP, advertised as this season’s top contender after a bridesmaid finish to Ateneo last year.
“We’re still far from being contented. We still have room for improvement but who would not be happy with a 4-1 slate? We’re happy to be at 4-1 but again, we still have a lot of things to work on,” said coach Bo Perasol.
Justine Balzatar hauled down a double-double of 21 points and 14 rebounds plus two blocks while Andrei Caracut unloaded back-to-back treys in the last minute as La Salle held on to a 68-61 win over Adamson.
The Archers snapped their two-game slump to improve at 2-3. The Falcons slipped to 3-3.
The Scores:
First Game:
UP 62 – Akhuetie 16, Ja. Gomez de Liano 15, Paras 12, Rivero 7, Tungcab 4, Ju. Gomez de Liano 3, Manzo 3, Webb 2, Murrell 0, Prado 0, Spencer 0.
UE 56 – Diakhite 21, Abanto 9, Tolentino 8, Antiporda 6, Pagsanjan 6, Suerte 4, Cruz 2, Manalang 0, Mendoza 0, Natividad 0.
Quarterscores: 23-15, 39-27, 46-42, 62-56.
Second Game
La Salle 68 – Baltazar 21, Caracut 15, Malonzo 12, Manuel 6, Lojera 5, Melecio 4, Bates 3, Bartlett 2, Cagulangan 0, Cu 0, Meeker 0, Pado 0, Serrano 0.A
Adamson 61 – Ahanmisi 13, Chauca 13, Camacho 12, Mojica 9, Douanga 7, Lastimosa 3, Fermin 2, Zaldivar 2, Bernardo 0, Flowers 0, Magbuhos 0, Manlapaz 0, Yerro 0.
Quarterscores: 15-21, 41-32, 52-49, 68-61
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