The Green Archers’ campaign in the PCCL ended today as they fell to the Letran Knights 66-61.
La Salle led the entire first half until the midway point of the third period as Letran caught fire offensively to take control of the match. The Knights’ lead went as high as 11 points in the early goings of the 4th quarter.
A rally by the Archers trimmed the deficit to just two points with 3 minutes left in the game. Unfortunately, a couple of bad breaks down the stretch enabled the Knights to push their lead further to six with 24 seconds remaining.
The Letran trio of Racal, Alas and Cruz did most of the damage as they combined for more than half of their team’s total output.
Norbert Torres was the only Archer who scored in double figures with 16 points along with 9 rebounds. Luigi de la Paz was unable to play due to a fractured elbow he sustained yesterday in their game against UST.
The Archers end their PCCL stint with a 4- 1 record. With their sixth place finish in the UAAP, they had to go through the Metro Manila Qualifiers to enter the Sweet 16. Along the way, they defeated Mapua, CEU, University of Batangas and UST.
Despite a depleted roster, having to adjust to a new coaching system and playing so many back-to-back games, La Salle still managed to go far in this tournament.
Boxscores
CSJL 66 – Racal 14, K. Alas 14, Cruz 11, Almazan 10, Cortes 6, Lituania 5, Gabawan 2, Espiritu 2, Pantin 2, Belorio 0, J. Alas 0
DLSU 61 – Torres 16, Mendoza 9, Vosotros 8, Revilla 8, Tampus 6, Webb 6, Marata 4, Paredes 3, Gotladera 1
Quarterscores: 13-15;25-29;47-42;66-61