National University showed its full might and cruised past University of the Perpetual Help, 83-71, to complete a sweet sweep of its elimination round assignments in PG Flex Linoleum UCBL Pre-Season tournament Thursday at the SGS Gym in Quezon City.
LA Cansinillo
The Bulldogs put up a defensiv
MANILA - Ateneo denied the University of the Philippines (UP) a grand UAAP men's basketball championship party on Wednesday night after taking a 69-66 win in Game 2 of their best-of-three finals affair at the Mall of Asia in Pasay. The outcome means the Blue Eagles, the defending champions, and the Fighting Maroons, seeking their first title since 1986, will meet one last time for all the marbles on Friday night at the same venue. Ateneo survived despite UP pulling off yet another second-half showcase to be just three minutes away from ending a long title drought. Down by as much as 15 points in the third quarter, the Fighting Maroons used a huge run spanning through the fourth quarter to go up, 57-56, with 4:48 remaining. After an exchange of baskets, the Blue Eagles went on a game-turning 9-2 run to take a 69-63 lead with less than a minute remaining. UP kept itself in the game after Zav Lucero scored on a layup and got a stop on the other end in the next play. But Ricci Rivero t
MANILA - The University of the Philippines (UP) won for the eighth straight time this University Athletic Association of the Philippines men's basketball season after edging Far Eastern University (FEU), 73-70, on Tuesday at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay. Despite a rare off-day for him, Zav Lucero, which only made seven markers, won it for UP as he drained the go-ahead basket with 1:27 left that broke a 70-all tie. The team, however, could not close it out on its own as it missed crucial free throws, including two from Harold Alarcon with 5.9 seconds left that could have iced the game from there. Luckily for them, RJ Abarrientos badly missed a heavily-contested three-pointer as time ran out on FEU's chances to force overtime. Rivero, who struggled in the first round of the eliminations, continued with his progress this season as he fired 19 points with five rebounds and two assists to lead the Fighting Maroons. Carl Tamayo added 14 points, six rebounds, two assists, and three
MANILA - Matty Erolon scored the winning basket, while Cedrick Manzano put up a defensive gem in the end as Adamson escaped with a 64-63 win against Far Eastern University (FEU) in Matchday 8 of the UAAP men's basketball tournament on Tuesday at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay. Erolon scored on a corner three with three seconds off a kick-out pass from Jerom Lastimosa as the Soaring Falcons prevailed despite losing a 14-point lead built in the first half. The Tamaraws still had a chance to steal the game, but Manzano picked the pass intended for Emman Ojuola as time ran out. Lastimosa finished with 17 points, eight rebounds, two assists, and one block for Adamson, which began the second round of the eliminations on a high note by snapping a five-game losing streak and moving up to 2-6 for the season. Manzano added 14 points on a perfect 7-for-7 shooting, four rebounds, one block, and one steal off the bench. LJ Gonzales had his 20-point performance on top of five rebounds, four ass
MANILA - The University of the Philippines (UP) scored its fifth straight win in the UAAP men's basketball event after taking down La Salle, 61-59, on Thursday at the Mall of Asia Arena. Despite an error-prone performance, the Fighting Maroons moved up to the solo second spot with the victory while dropping the Green Archers to third. La Salle turned to its patented Pumaren style of defense and was on the verge of breaking away after holding UP to just one field goal in a six-minute span in the third and the fourth quarter while taking a 52-45 lead early in the fourth. The Maroons, however, unleashed a 14-4 run midway through the fourth to take a 59-56 advantage with 3:27 to play. The game remained tight the rest of the way, but UP escaped after La Salle's Michael Phillips missed a buzzer-beating layup that could have forced overtime. Zav Lucero powered the Fighting Maroons, now at 5-1, with 21 points highlighted by a two-handed dunk and a clutch triple that highlighted their g