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| Kib Montalbo in Game 2 |
La Salle overcomes a 21-point deficit to snatch Game 2 of the UAAP Finals against archrivals Ateneo, securing a 92-83 victory this past Wednesday afternoon at the SMART-Araneta Coliseum.
Fresh from being crowned as the Most Valuable Player for the second straight season, Ben Mbala bounced back from a subpar Game 1 performance with twenty points and sixteen rebounds, while Ricci Rivero overcame first half foul trouble to score eighteen points. Andrei Caracut also bounced back with thirteen points to be named as the Player of the Game.
The Blue Eagles forced the Green Archers to start on the back foot, riding on their hot outside shooting to score 32 points in the first quarter. They would eventually establish their largest lead at twenty-one points twice in the second quarter, as they took advantage of foul trouble issues on both Ben Mbala and Ricci Rivero, with the latter forced to sit with four fouls with three minutes remaining in the period and having a emotional breakdown in the process.
La Salle would eventually get their game going late in the first half, establishing a 14-2 run to close the gap to just a 51-42 deficit into the break.
Assistant coach Miguel Solitaria admitted to the media after the game, "That first quarter, medyo gigil ang mga players. We realized in the second quarter that we really needed to contain them, because almost all of their points were coming from transition."
A different La Salle side showed up in the second half, as Mbala would make his presence felt inside. The Green Archers were now able to push the tempo as they feasted in transition scoring opportunities off Ateneo turnovers. Head coach Aldin Ayo risk of bringing back Ricci in the third quarter paid off, as he would match the Blue Eagles' scoring output in the third quarter by himself.
Santi Santillan tied things up at 56 before Isaac Go's layup retook the lead for Ateneo at 58-56, with just over three minutes remaining. That turned out to be the last time the Blue Eagles led in the game, as the champions ended the third quarter on a 12-1 run to erect a 68-59 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
Ateneo valiantly tried to make their own comeback in the final period, anchoring their efforts around Aaron Black and Thirdy Ravena, but La Salle would match such efforts, holding on to the nine-point victory.
When asked about how he managed to survive playing with four fouls in the second half, Ricci said, "Sa second half, it wasn't me who played. Siguro, that was God."
About dealing with adversity during that first half, Mbala shared, "We stick together. We didn't give up. We kept playing D. We kept believing. We stuck to the game plan."
La Salle's defence cooled Ateneo hot shooting to just 38.36% while committing 21 turnovers. The Blue Eagles also made just two triples in the final three quarters after converting five in the first half.
Ravena topscored for the Blue Eagles with twenty points, while Black finished with fifteen markers on 6/8 shooting.
Game 3 is scheduled to take place on Sunday afternoon at the SMART-Araneta Coliseum. (c/o Kim Karlo Castro)
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