Lurking underneath in the last 10.4 seconds, the 6’8" Go scored on a three-point play to lift the Blue Eagles to a 76-70 triumph over the defending champion La Salle Green Archers in Game 1 of the UAAP Finals last night at the Mall of Asia Arena.
Go, held to five points in the 15 minutes he played, struck with a layup off Thirdy Ravena’s pass and a free throw off Kib Montalbo’s foul, handing Ateneo a six-point edge in the remaining time.
The Blue Eagles, with Ravena firing 12 points and pulling down six rebounds, will shoot for the title, their first in five years, on Wednesday, also at the Big Dome.
With the Blue Eagles' tight defense focused on Ben Mbala, the Green Archers missed six of their seven attempts in under three minutes.
The Green Archers, led by Aljun Melecio with 24 points, last scored off his driving shot against Raffy Verano in the last 2:30, 70-71.
After Ravena answered with a putback with 2:09 to go, for a 73-70 Ateneo lead, the Green Archers began misfiring with the 6’2" Ravena and Matt Nieto helping Go in protecting the shaded lane.
Both Aljun Melecio and Ricci Rivero bungled three attempts in those crucial minutes, allowing Ateneo to escape with the win.
The Blue Eagles, who won back-to-back titles in 2011 and 2012, got 11 points apiece from the Nieto brothers Matthew and Mike.
“We couldn’t play Ben Mbala straight up one-on-one. We needed to come up with a scheme against him. All of our five guys had to come up and do their roles in order to slow down Ben, That was important for us,” said Blue Eagles coach Sandy Arespacochaga.
Mbala, La Salle'main man underneath, was held to his lowest output this season with eight points.
Meanwhile, the UE Lady Warriors reached the finals after a fight-marred game.
Love Sto. Domingo made 18 points and 12 rebounds for the University of the East Lady Warriors as they prevailed over the University of Santo Tomas Tigresses, 69-62, in the fight-marred women’s playoff.
A brawl took place in the closing minutes of the match, which saw the Lady Warriors reach the finals for the first time.
UE leaned on big defensive plays to overhaul a 58-59 deficit, force turnovers and hit timely free throws to gain a 64-59 lead with 1:30 left in the game.
A fight then started when UST's Sai Larosa threw a punch at Sto. Domingo after she split her charities.
Larosa was ejected, along with UE players Marieny Requiron, Erica Ebeza, and Princess Pedregosa.
Sto. Domingo paced UE’s offense with 18 points and 12 rebounds, while Eunique Chan added 16 markers and 12 boards.
"Doon ko nakita ‘yung five years na pinaghirapan namin. Sabi ko sa kanila nga noong natalo kami against UST noong Game 1 namin, sabi ko, masakit pero kailangan nating bumangon,” said UST coach Haydee Ong.
The scores
Women's Game
UE (69) – Sto. Domingo 18, Chan 16, Francisco 14, Tacula 8, Cortizano 7, Ramos 4, Requiron 2, Gayacao 0, Antonio 0, Nama 0.
UST (62) – Anies 16, Larosa 16, Gandalla 9, Angeles 7, Rivera 4, Peñaflor 3, Jerez 3, Sanggalang 2, Isanan 2, Aujero 0, Portillo 0, Magat 0, Manuel 0, Valera 0.
Quarterscores: 10-16, 27-35, 47-56, 69-62
Men's Game
ATENEO 76 – Ravena 12, Nieto Ma 11, Nieto Mi 11, Asistio 10, Tolentino 9, Black 7, Verano 5, Go 5, Ikeh 4, Tio 2, Mamuyac 0, Mendoza 0, Porter 0
DLSU 70 – Melecio 24, Rivero R 10, Mbala 8, Tratter 7, Santillan 7, Rivero P 7, Baltazar 4, Montalbo 3, Caracut 0, Go 0, Tero 0, Paraiso 0
QUARTER SCORES: 26-14, 43-39, 60-58, 76-70
Games Wednesday (Araneta Coliseum)
11 a.m. UE vs NU (Women Game 1)
4 p.m. La Salle vs Ateneo (Game 2)
