THE GROWLING Tigers’ remarkable run in UAAP Season 76 ended with a 69-71 overtime loss to the De La Salle Green Archers, who claimed the men’s basketball title at the Mall of Asia Arena last Oct. 12.
It marked the second straight season wherein the Tigers missed what could have been their first title since 2006. But unlike last year’s match against the Ateneo Blue Eagles, this year’s series against the Archers had the makings of a classic.
The “sibling rivalry” between Jeric Teng of UST and younger brother Jeric lived up to the hype as their both starred for their respective squads throughout the series that was stretched to three games. In the end, the younger Teng got the better of his older brother as he led the Archers to their first title since 2007, while bagging Finals MVP honors.
Jeric played his last season with the Tigers, falling short of a championship the last two years. But there’s no denying how he helped being back UST in championship form throughout his playing years.
In his last game for the Tigers, UST had a chance to send the game into a second overtime with 2.3 seconds left. But Karim Abdul’s long jumper missed the mark as the Green Archers captured their eighth league title.
Abdul finished with a game-high 26 points for the Tigers while Jeric contributed 24.
“Karim wanted to get the ball and Jeric wanted to be the one to pass,” coach Pido Jarencio said.
UST had a chance to end the game in regulation but Aljon Mariano missed a long two at the buzzer as the game was extended for another five minutes.
La Salle hotshot Almond Vosotros opened the overtime with a layup off a broken fastbreak play to give the Archers a 67-65 lead.
The Tigers then settled for outside shots but missed three attempts before Jeric Teng nailed a contested turnaround jumper to give UST the lead, 69-67, with 34 seconds remaining.
But Vosotros delivered the killer shot off a Mariano error, a baseline jumper in the last 19.7 seconds. LA Revilla then split his charities with 9.1 seconds remaining to seal the final tally.
Teng, who will be leaving the team along with gunner Clark Bautista, remained confident that the Tigers will be back next year.
“Definitely, the key players are still there. They’re ready when they’re called. I’m sure they’ll work hard in the off season,” Teng said.
UST and La Salle engaged in a tight fourth quarter with the Tigers earning some breathing room, 59-54, via a Teng three-pointer.
The Green Archers, however, relied on Jeron Teng, who pumped in 12 of his 25 points in the payoff period including a tough layup that gave La Salle a 65-63 lead with 1:03 remaining. Mariano, who was limited to three points, then buried two pressure-packed freethrows to tie the game anew.
UST was ahead by 15, 40-25, in the third quarter and seemed poised to win the title until La Salle went on a furious 22-6 run. Archer Thomas Torres capped the rally with a trey to take the lead, 47-46, before Tiger John Sherriff buried a buzzer-beating floater to regain the lead, 48-47.
