MANILA, Philippines – La Salle continued its winning ways and had little trouble in dispatching winless University of the Philippines, 74-53, in the 77th season of the UAAP men’s basketball tourney at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Wednesday.
Jeron Teng provided a double-double effort with 25 points – 20 of which came in the first half – and 11 boards while Almond Vosotros added 15 markers to help extend the Archers’ winning streak to four.
Despite the lopsided win, La Salle coach Juno Sauler still cited some lapses by his team.
"We came out better today with energy, but we didn't finish the same way in the second half. So I think we slacked off in the end," said DLSU coach Juno Sauler.
"I think we're playing better not because we are on a winning streak but generally, we are playing better," added Sauler, whose team recovered after a 0-2 start in the season.
The Archers pulled away early in the opening canto with a blistering 17-0 run and never looked back.
For the Maroons, despair keeps on piling up as they have now lost their 27th straight overall game dating back to 2012 in Season 75. They are currently 0-6 in the standings.
La Salle registered the largest lead of the game when Teng knocked down a triple at the 2:24 mark of the second quarter to mount a 47-15 cushion.
The Diliman-based squad – who missed the services of coach Rey Madrid due to suspension – managed to trim the deficit, closing the second quarter with a 9-3 run to trail 24-50 at the break.
The Maroons then outscored the Archers in the second half, 29-24, but it wasn’t enough for them to recover.