Ateneo hands LaSalle its 2nd Straight Loss!

The game that all the green gangs and the blue battalions have circled on their calendars had finally commenced and ended in a sweet fashion. The most storied rivalry of the UAAP had another classic match-up to put up in its archives; as the Blue Eagles needed an extra five minutes to outlast the Green Archers in heavily fought match in the Big Dome on Thursday night. The players reached deep beneath their gut to pull out the extra effort needed to take home pride and honor for the school; and it was the Blue Eagles who had prevailed for this round, 80-77.
The game was a see-saw battle all the way to the end of the first half, as the Archers only narrowly led through most of the first two quarters with their biggest lead being 5; only to watch the Blue Eagles tie the ballgame at 30-all as the first half ended with Chris Tiu hitting a 3-pointer from the corner to tie the game. The 3rd quarter was a different story however, as the Ateneo Blue Eagles started to pull away while the Archers were still pondering how to stop the Blue Eagle rally. The Eagles entered the 4th quarter with a 5-point lead, and looked like they were going to blow the game wide open as they took a 9-point lead, before the Archers decided to finally pull things together and rallied right back into the game. The Archers were able to cut the lead to 2 or 3 points on numerous occasions, but committed unnecessary fouls each time which spelled free throws for the Blue Eagles; in turn, the baskets made by the Archers were offset and the gap in the score remained. In the final 2 minutes however, JV Casio had enough and took the game into his own hands. He scored on a coast-to-coast lay-up in transition to pull the score closer; on the ensuing possession, he hit a step-back 3-pointer; and in his final basket of regulation, he curled through a pick to find himself open for the game-tying jump shot, 65-65. Cholo Villanueva scored on a fast-break to give the Archers their first lead since early in the 3rd quarter with 13.8 seconds left, but Ford Arao overpowered PJ Walsham on the other end for an easy deuce to tie the game, 67-67. The Archers had the final shot of the game, but JV Casio hampered by the stifling perimeter defense of the Blue Ealges and was not able to attempt a shot as time expired.
In overtime, it was mostly Ateneo-dominated basketball. Ford Arao continued to dominate the post as the Archers still refused to double-team him and allowed PJ Walsham to defend Arao 1-on-1. Jai Reyes then found an open Chris Tiu for the biggest shot of the game; The Blue Eagles were up by only 1, as Chris Tiu found the ball in his hands and the path to the basket crystal clear. He shot and made the 3-pointer to give the Eagles a 4-point lead with 38 seconds left to play in the game. With 2.2 seconds left in the game, and the Eagles still up by 4-points, Rico Maierhofer found himself on the charity stripe to try and pull the Archers closer. He made the first free throw to cut the lead to 3, and intentionally missed the second one; the ball was tapped all the way to beyond the arc where Rico Maierhofer launched a prayer to tie the game, a prayer which was unfortunately left unanswered.
The Blue Eagles were led by Jai Reyes with 18 points and 6 assists, followed by Chris Tiu with 15 points and 6 rebounds. The triple towers of Ateneo combined for 29 points and 24 rebounds, with Ford Arao owning the 14 points and 5 rebounds.
The Green Archers were led by JV Casio with 21 points. Rico Maierhofer posted a double-double for the Green Archers with 19 points and 10 rebounds. TY Tang shot 2-9 FGs and turned the ball over 6 times as he fouled out of the game in 29 minutes of play. The Archers were out-assisted, 17-8.
The Green Archers will try to avoid their third straight loss of the season as they go up against the defending champions, the streaking UST Growling Tigers, on Sunday. It will also be a day of redemption as the Archers test the Growling Tigers’ credibility as champions; and the Growling Tigers will try to prove that whether the Archers were present or not, they would still be champions.
Arrows will fly and tigers will roar. Will the hunter become the hunted, or will the predator become the prey? Watch for it this Sunday.
Animo La Salle! Beat UST!