Mark Nonoy nailed clutch baskets as De La Salle survived the gritty University of the East with an 85-82 win in nail-biting overtime in the UAAP Season 84 men's basketball tournament at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City Thursday night, April 21.
Justine Baltazar and Mike Phillips clamped down on their defense and joined forces to secure multiple rebounds, combining for a total of 48, as the Green Archers maintained their solo spot at third with a 7-3 record while the Red Warriors remained winless in 10 straight games.
Clearly, De La Salle's defense paved the way for a great offense as Nonoy cleaned up his own three-pointer and converted a difficult go-ahead jump shot contested by Kyle Paranada with 49.8 seconds left to lead at 80-78.
The Season 82 Rookie of the Year, who finished with 11 points four steals, three rebounds, and three steals, showed poise down the stretch after draining a triple with 23.6 ticks to go off a miss from UE's Clint Escamis.
Harvey Pagsanjan, who was the main sparkplug for the Warriors, pumped life after scoring back-to-back baskets to trail by only one point, 83-82, with 12.5 seconds remaining.
Baltazar made his veteran presence felt after icing the game with a pair of free throws before Pagsanjan's missed his potential game-tying three as time expired.
"We really had to dig deep to get this win. I think UE really played well," said De La Salle head coach Derrick Pumaren. "Fortunately, we were able to regroup and get the win."
Deschon Winston led the Archers with 18 points, four assists, and three rebounds while Kurt Lojera, who sparked the De La Salle's fourth quarter run, had 17 points.
Baltazar posted 14 points and 22 rebounds while Phillips chalked up 12 points and 26 rebounds. Their rebounds outmatched the total tally made by UE, 48-41.
Earlier, Paranada dished the ball out to Allan Beltran for the game-tying buzzer-beater layup against the outstretched arms of Phillips, 69-all.
The Archers saw their early 15-point deficit become a 59-all deadlock after Lojera powered a 13-2 run midway through the payoff period.
Pagsanjan paced the Warriors, who were already eliminated, with 23 points and 10 rebounds while Paranada and Jem Cruz scored 13 and 10 points, respectively.
De La Salle had its chance to take a share at the second-seed with University of the Philippines on Saturday, April 23 in their 4:30 p.m. encounter while UE and Far Eastern University will conclude the quadruple-header at 7 p.m.
The Scores:
LA SALLE 85 -- Winston 18, Lojera 17, Baltazar 14, M. Phillips 12, Nonoy 11, Nwankwo 5, Nelle 3, Escandor 2, Galman 2, Cuajao 1, B. Phillips 0, Manuel 0.
UE 82 -- Pagsanjan 23, K. Paranada 13, J. Cruz 10, Beltran 9, N. Paranada 9, Escamis 7, Sawat 6, Lorenzana 5, Antiporda 0, Villanueva 0, Guevarra 0, P. Cruz 0, Abatayo 0.
Quarters: 9-20, 32-32, 48-57, 69-69, 85-82.