Warriors nail No. 3, Archers stay alive

MANILA, Philippines - University of the East held off University of the Phils., 81-72, to clinch the third Final Four slot while La Salle stayed in the hunt for the last semis berth by repeating over University of Santo Tomas, 68-64, in the UAAP seniors basketball tournament at the Araneta Coliseum yesterday.

The Warriors battled back from 10 points down and went to Paul Lee and Val Acuña in the fourth quarter to foil the Maroons’ upset bid and formalize their stint in the next round with an 8-4 mark.

The Archers, on the other hand, fended off outright elimination as they relied on James Mangahas down the stretch to repulse the fourth-running Tigers and live for another day.

The Archers picked up their fifth win against seven losses, moving closer to the Tigers, who fell to 6-6 (win-loss) heading into the last three playdates of the double round elims.

Mangahas, who didn’t see action in the first half, fired 13 of his team-high 15 points in the last period, including a triple down the stretch that broke the backs of the Tigers.

“He (Mangahas) played well and he responded to the challenge. Maybe you’re wondering how come I put him in only in the second half, you saw it, the young guys really played well in the first half,” said La Salle coach Fr anz Pumaren.

“That’s a mark of a good player, sitting on the bench for the longest time but accepting the challenge quite well,” he said.

But La Salle still needs to win its last two games over Far Eastern U tomorrow and National U next week and hope UST lose to Adamson on Sunday and UE next week to make it to the Final Four for the 14 straight year.

“I think it’s doable,” said Pumaren. “Of course, we’re still dependent on other teams. But we have to take care of our business first and we have to pray that other teams would beat UST.”

Lee and Acuña each scored nine points in the fourth quarter to finish with 21 and 17 points, respectively, for the Warriors.

Lee had a pair of crucial three-point plays, the first giving UE the lead for good and the other a twisting shot that capped the Warriors’ come-from-behind victory.

But it was Acuña who delivered the big baskets in the game, including three triples in a one-minute stretch that keyed the Warriors fightback from 55-65 to a 66-all count.

“Val Acuña bailed us out while Paul Lee put on the finishing touches,” said UE mentor Lawrence Chongson.

UE, which booked its fourth straight win and eighth overall in 12 outings, thus made it to the Final Four for the eighth straight season.

The Maroons took their ninth setback against three triumphs.