By LEE BENJAMIN
DE La Salle had 40 minutes to salvage a UAAP men's basketball season that had championship aspirations, as well as MVP and Mythical Team chances for Kevin Quiambao and Evan Nelle, respectively.
But for the first three-and-a-half minutes on Sunday at Araneta Coliseum, the Green Archers, down 0-1 to the UP Maroons, hardly looked like a desperate team whose backs were against the wall, falling behind by 12 points early.
READ La Salle brings the energy, firepower to beat UP, force title decider
Then Quiambao came off the bench. And La Salle remembered all they talked about just two days prior in a players-only meeting that settled just exactly what they had to do to bounce back from their 30-point loss, 67-97, to the Maroons in Game 1.
"We had to hold each other accountable," said Nelle. "We hear everything, na we should do this, we should do that. But we're the ones feeling the pressure and intensity of the game. We sat down and agreed na we have to match their physicality and we have to be smarter."
With the first local MVP in eight year's leading from the front upon his entry, the Green Archers imposed their heart and hustle on the Fighting Maroons, as the former wound up dominating the boards, 58-46, as well as the blocks department, 7-2.
They also took 13 more shots than their opponents, mainly due to 19 offensive rebounds, and finished with 12 more second-chance points.
The Taft-based team also came through individually, with Quiambao and Mike Phillips stifling all State U bigs including Malick Diouf, while Nelle and Co. put the clamps on JD Cagulangan, CJ Cansino, and Harold Alarcon.
"In Game 1, UP came out with the intensity and physicality. We had to match that today. We had to stop their players kasi they're an offensive bomb. We had to stop at least one of them, that was our mindset," said Nelle.
"You're in front of us? We're gonna stop you!"
La Salle players meeting
As one of La Salle's leaders, it was the graduating guard who - alongside Joaqui Manuel, Phillips, and Quiambao - set up the players-only meeting that may very well have salvaged their season. With their own 22-point, 82-60, rout in Game 2, they now force a winner-take-all bout in three days' time.
And Nelle has yet another guarantee for that game.
"We're gonna win this. I love our team. I wanna do it all for them and everybody who's supporting us," he said. "I won't lose. We won't lose. That's not in our vocabulary."
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