UE upsets defending champs, hands La Salle’s first loss
University of the East pulled off a shocker when they defeated the defending champion, De La Salle Green Archers, 75-71, in the UAAP’s 87th Season at the Mall of Asia Arena.
The Red Warriors also gave La Salle its first loss of the season in front of the 6,946 spectators inside the arena who also witnessed them shoot an astonishing 12-of-30 from downtown.
John Abate led the Recto side with a career game of 20 points while firing a perfect 3-of-3 from the arc, also grabbing four boards, and sinking two-pressure packed free throws with 3.4 seconds left to complete the upset.
Wello Lingolingo had 18 points built on six triples, Gjerard Wilson contributed 10 points, three rebounds, three steals, and two assists, and Precious Momowei produced only five markers but hauled 12 boards.
“This batch is capable of competing and beating the No. 1 team,” beamed coach Jack Santiago as the Red Warriors improved to 2-2.
“I will give credit to my boys 'cause during our practice, I saw the intensity already. I just told them we have a good start and keep the game close,” he added.
UE actually waxed hot from the very beginning and built an early 28-11 and hold on to it until the end even though the Green Archers rallied from a 71-59 deficit in the final three minutes of the game, and got close within two points, 73-71, after Kevin Quiambao made a bucket with 28.4 seconds remaining.
Quiambao, the defending Season and Finals MVP, had a chance to bring the game to overtime but he uncharacteristically missed two free throws with 15.8 remaining on the clock. The misses led to Abate putting the finishing touches by sinking the free throws of his own.
KQ still led La Salle with 17 points, nine rebounds, and five dimes but his 4-of-10 shooting from the line overshadowed his efforts.
Michael Phillips backed him up with 16 markers and nine boards, while Vhoris Marasigan nabbed 10 in the loss.
The Scores:
UE 75 – Abate 20, Lingolingo 18, Wilson 10, Galang 7, Maga 7, Momowei 5, J. Cruz-Dumont 5, Fikes 3, Jimenez 0, Mulingtapang 0, Malaga 0.
LA SALLE 71 – Quiambao 17, M. Phillips 16, Marasigan 10, Agunanne 8, Gollena 6, Macalalag 5, Gonzales 3, David 2, Abadam 2, Dungo 2, Ramiro 0.
Quarters: 28-11, 42-38, 56-50, 75-71.
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Jayson Castro scored 16 points and made an immediate impact in his first game of the PBA Season 49 Commissioner's Cup.
Castro added three steals and two assists in his return to help TNT Tropang Giga get the 109-93 victory over the Blackwater Bossing on Thursday night, December 19, at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
The nine-time PBA champion missed TNT's first three games due to hamstring issues.
TNT's all-around import Rondae Hollis-Jefferson supported Castro with his 22 points, nine rebounds, five dimes, five deflections, and a block.
Four more Tropang Giga scored in double digits to get their second straight victory of the tourney. Rey Nambatac contributed 19, Calvin Oftana provided 18, RR Pogoy put up 12, and Glenn Khobuntin added 10.
Meanwhile, Blackwater high-scoring import George King, who averaged 39 points per game, was only limited to a conference-low 28 markers on 10-of-22.
The Bossing also don't have their prized rookie Sedrick Barefield due to injury.
With King being handcuffed and Barefield not in the lineup, RK Ilagan stepped up and poured out 19 points highlighted by 3-of-3 shooting from the arc.
The game was the last of the year for both teams.
TNT will be back in action on January 7 against Meralco Bolts, while Blackwater will come back on January 8 to face Rain or Shine Elasto Painters.
Sweet-shooting guard Jordan Heading and import Cheick Diallo poured out 21 points each to lead Converge in their victory over the Phoenix Fuel Masters, 116-105, on Thursday night, December 19, at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
The win marked the first time that the FiberXers won back-to-back games in the PBA Season 49 Commissioner's Cup and improved their record to 4-2.
Besides Heading and Diallo, four more Converge players scored in double digits. Schonny Winston and Bryan Santos contributed 16 apiece, while Alec Stockton and BJ Andrade added 14 and 11, respectively.
Their twin towers, ace center Justin Arana and top pick rookie Justine Baltazar both came out with six markers.
"We give credit to our guys," said FiberXers acting head coach Franco Atienza, who admitted that he was anxious when Phoenix made a good start that led to a 20-2 lead.
"We just stuck on, we didn't panic. We returned to how we want to run our system, how to run our offense, our defense," Atienza added.
Converge will have a chance to extend their win streak when they face Barangay Ginebra on Saturday, December 21, in Batangas City, and against Meralco Bolts on Christmas day at the Big Dome.
Meanwhile, Donovan Mitchell led Phoenix with 30 points and 18 rebounds. He was supported by RJ Jazul's 20, Tyler Tio's 13, and Ricci Rivero's 11.
The Fuel Masters now have a 1-5 win-loss record after dropping their final game of the year.
The Scores:
CONVERGE 116 - Heading 21, Diallo 21, Winston 16, Santos 16, Stockton 14, Andrade 11, Arana 6, Baltazar 6, Racal 5, Delos Santos 0, Caralipio 0.
PHOENIX 105 - Smith 30, Jazul 20, Tio 13, Perkins 12, Rivero 11, Tuffin 8, Verano 4, Garcia 3, Soyud 2, Manganti 2, Salado 0, Alejandro 0, Muyang 0, Ular 0, Daves 0.
Quarter Scores: 15-30, 48-54, 87-80, 116-105.
San Miguel failed to earn its breakthrough win in the 2024-25 East Asia Super League (EASL) after bowing to Hong Kong Eastern, 62-71, at Southorn Stadium in Hong Kong, on Wednesday, December 18.
Kobey Lam spearheaded the pivotal comeback, registering 19 points, which gave the Hong Kong squad its first victory in the EASL game.
Notwithstanding the efforts of June Mar Fajardo and recently signed import Torren Jones for San Miguel, Eastern maintained their lead.
After a difficult turn-around shot by Fajardo, the Beermen were able to cut the margin to just two points at 58-60 in the fourth quarter.
However, just when it appeared that San Miguel had the advantage, Lam blazed through when he scored five of Eastern’s 9-0 run.
Lam also posted three rebounds and one assist for the Hong Kong-based squad, with Chris McLaughlin tallying a double-double of 16 markers and 17 boards, while Glenn Yang contributed 11 for the home team.
Fajardo and Jones led the charge for the Beermen with 19 points each, but their efforts were for naught as they failed to keep the team from suffering a third straight loss and dropping to the bottom of Group A.
The loss was the first in three games for Leo Austria since taking over as coach last week in place of Jorge Gallent.
San Miguel will aim to finally grab their first win in the EASL as they face the Hiroshima Dragonflies on January 8 at the Hiroshima Sun Plaza in Japan.
The Scores:
Hong Kong 71 – Lam 19, McLaughlin 16, Yang 11, Blankley 7, Xu 5, Leung 5, Chan 4, Zhu 4, Cheung 0, Pok 0, Guinchard 0.
San Miguel 62 – Fajardo 19, Jones 19, Perez 8, Miller 5, Trollano 3, Tautuaa 3, Cahilig 3, Rosales 2, Ross 0, Lassiter 0.
Quarter Scores: 28-14, 48-34, 60-48, 71-62.