MARK Nonoy pulled La Salle from the rut and Justine Baltazar took it home as it gutted out a 59-55 victory over National University in the UAAP Season 84 men's basketball tournament Tuesday at Mall of Asia Arena.
La Salle vs NU recap
Nonoy dropped 10 of his 13 points in the fourth quarter in his Green Archers debut, while Baltazar made the key baskets including the crucial three-point play that made it a 59-52 affair with 21.0 seconds left and secure the Taft side their second straight win.
The UAAP Season 82 Rookie of the Year also collected four rebounds, four assists, and three steals after sitting out the first game due to a hamstring injury.
Baltazar, meanwhile, uncorked 13 points, seven boards, and three assists as La Salle gained an early lead in the tourney.
"I think things weren't going right for us. We got the lead by nine points in the second quarter but we lost focus and concentration and we made a lot of mistakes. The boys really worked hard for this win, they dug deep, and we just had to win through defense by playing tough," said coach Derick Pumaren.
CJ Austria chipped in 10 points from his pair of treys, while Michael Phillips also hauled down 11 rebounds on top of his three points.
La Salle truly dialled down on defense as it made up for its paltry 31-percent shooting by forcing NU to 20 turnovers.
It was a tough loss for the gritty Bulldogs which slid down to 1-1.
Michael Malonzo led the balanced NU attack with 10 points and four boards, as Enzo Joson, Jake Figueroa, and John Lloyd Clemente all got nine in the defeat.
The Scores:
LA SALLE 59 -- Nonoy 13, Baltazar 13, Austria 10, Lojera 7, Manuel 6, Nelle 5, M. Phillips 3, Winston 2, Nwankwo 0, B. Phillips 0, Cuajao 0, Cortez 0, Macalalag 0.
NU 55 -- Malonzo 10, Joson 9, Figueroa 9, Clemente 9, Mahinay 6, Enriquez 4, Tibayan 4, Gaye 2, Felicilda 2, Galinato 0, Ildefonso 0, Torres 0, Yu 0, Manansala 0, Minerva 0.
Quarters: 19-16, 29-30, 42-43, 59-55.
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