UST rallies anew, whips La Salle

Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net

University of Santo Tomas overcame another double-digit deficit, this time, rallying past De La Salle University, 77-61, in the UAAP Season 78 men’s basketball tournamentWednesday night at Mall of Asia Arena.

The Growling Tigers came back from 14 points down replicating their feat four days ago when they rose from a 16-point deficit to stun the Ateneo Blue Eagles.

UST forward Kevin Ferrer continued his fiery play with a game-high 17 points on 3-of-4 shooting from deep after putting up a career-best 27 points last Saturday.

“It started with our defense. We recovered because of our defense,” said UST head coach Bong dela Cruz.

“I’m really happy because my teammates stepped up,” said Ferrer, who played only 16 minutes because of foul trouble.

The Tigers outscored the Green Archers by 33 points, 54-21, since trailing 30-16, in the second quarter to take a 70-51 advantage after a one-legged leaner with 6:39 left.

Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net

UST center Karim Abdul played his best game yet, posting his first double-double of the season with 13 points and 13 rebounds to go along with three steals.

Ed Daquioag added 11 points and six rebounds while Louie Vigil chipped in 10 points and had six boards as well for the Tigers, who reclaimed the top spot with a 5-1 slate.

Idle Far Eastern University has the same record as UST but the Tamaraws are placed in second after losing to the Tigers earlier in the season.

Jeron Teng paced the Archers with 13 points and nine rebounds but had six turnovers, attributed to UST’s stingy defense.

La Salle, which shot only 33% from the field, slipped to 3-3 before clashing with rival Ateneo on Sunday to end the first round of eliminations.

The Tigers made 11 triples in the game. Kyle Suarez sizzled with a 3-of-3 shooting from long distance to finish with ninr points off-the-bench.

“That’s what we’re waiting for to have the other players step up and knock down outside shots,” dela Cruz said.