Ang nakakahiyang 30-point beatdown ng De La Salle University sa University Athletic Association of the Philippines Season 86 men’s basketball finals series opener ay nagpasiklab sa damdamin ng Green Archers.
Pinasisigla nila ang apoy na iyon sa pagnanais na makabawi at pinaypayan ito sa isang malaking apoy na sumira sa University of the Philippines at inilipat ang momentum ng best-of-three title showdown sa kanilang panig.
Dahil sa galit at motivated, binigyan ng La Salle ang Fighting Maroons ng dosis ng kanilang sariling gamot na may parehong nakakapinsalang depensa, pagmamadali, at matamis na shooting sa labas ng kahit na sa serye, na nagpilit sa isang deciding Game 3 noong Miyerkules.
Pinasabog ng Green Archers ang UP, 82-60, noong Linggo sa Smart Araneta Coliseum para sa ikasa ang winner-take-all.
“Well, having 16 pissed off players during practice really, really excites me. You know they really were so pissed off that we got really clobbered in Game 1 and then they really responded,” saad ni Green Archers coach Topex Robinson.
“Our practice was really tough, you know those last three days but I really enjoyed watching them. Knowing that they’re not just gonna roll down and die you know, they really want to slug it out with the best team and that’s where the fun began for us,” dagdag niya.
Hindi nagpatinag mula sa isang maagang 10-point deficit, ang La Salle ay sumandal sa depensa habang sina Francis Escandor, Joshua David at CJ Austria ay natagpuan ang kanilang hanay mula sa labas upang i-flip ang laro patungo sa halftime bago ito ginawang isang ganap na one-sided affair.
Hindi na hinangad pa ng Green Archers na maulit ang nangyari sa Game 1 at sinabayan ang pisikal laro ng Fighting Maroons at outworking ang kanilang possession sa pamamagitan ng possession.
Napaka-epektib ng nakakapigil na depensa ng La Salle kung kaya’t hindi nakagawa ng field goal ang UP sa halos 11 minuto mula sa mga huling minuto ng unang quarter hanggang sa huling 47 segundo ng ikalawang quarter habang nagbukas ng komportableng unan.
Sina Escandor, David at Austria ay nagsabwatan para sa 10 sa 12 triples ng Green Archers na humila sa kanila nang tuluyan matapos ang kakila-kilabot na 2-of-23 three-point shooting sa Game 1.
“Again, obviously, rebounding is where it really is gonna be the nitty gritty part of the game, we always look at that. We always ride on the saying that no rebounds, no rings. So that’s one thing that we really focused on,” sabi ni Robinson.
“I mean, and it’s not only the big man’s effort. It has to be everybody, you know we just have to make sure that we’re going to have these bodies, these white shirts in the paint. Every time UP takes a shot or even us, I think we got a lot of offensive rebounds also, because guys were really going at it, you know, trying to slug it out with the bigs. Or even the guards of UP. So, it’s really going to play a vital role in the coming Game 3,” dagdag niya.
