DLSU Wins The UAAP Basketball Championship!

Yes!!! We're champions once again!

First, props to our Finals opponent, the UE Warriors for a great season - marked by an historic 14-0 sweep in the eliminations, earning an outright ticket to the finals - and for an awesome finals performance.

And of course, CONGRATS and thanks to the DLSU Archers for claiming the championship by, in turn, sweeping the Warriors 2-0 in the UAAP Finals.

The following is a nice article from Basketball Exchange:*

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DLSU 73, UE 64. Why They Are Champions
by Gary Mercado

The most compelling image I have of the game is that of Pocholo Villanueva with his hands on his knees, tears streaming from his cheeks, the pure ecstasy of victory shaking him like a leaf as he celebrated with his teammates.

And celebrate they should, as DLSU in my honest opinion, gave one of the most amazing, one of the most spectacular basketball performances I have ever seen, and I have seen quite a few.

I know I got it all wrong, predicting a UE win. But truth to tell, that’s the least of my worries. First, because I don’t think anyone could have possibly thought La Salle could pull it off, considering the level of ability of its opponent, the fact it was coming off a particularly draining set of games against ADMU, and finally that UE had weeks of idle time to prepare. That, along with the lack of ceiling (again), would be enough to make anyone with even a(n) iota of basketball opinion in them to vote against them.

Read full article here.

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See news articles about the championship here and here.

See photos here. And especially here from Vic Icasas.





*I initially stated that the article I referenced was written by a non-Lasallian. The author of the article himself has indicated to me that he is, in fact, from La Salle. I have since taken out my false and misinformed claim.

 

Forza La Salle

Here's a link to my Multiply entry expressing support for the DLSU Green Archers.

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Update: We won!!! Thank you both to the DLSU Green Archers and ADMU Blue Eagles for 5 classic ball games, where the average winning margin was just 2.4 points. Five memorable games, indeed.

In fact, the Eagles won more games in their head-to-head series with the Archers at 3-2. However, the Archers won when it mattered the most. As Coach Franz said, this may be the only time when 2 wins are better than 3.

Congrats to the Blue Eagles for a great season and for those 5 heart-stopping games!

Special Congrats to the Green Archers for prevailing! Now, on to the Finals!!

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Link to the "Never Shall We Fail" banner.

 

Late Night and a Loss

It's past 4am here and I'm still awake from checking on live updates on the DLSU - ADMU UAAP basketball game. What a game!

I've been getting my updates at Ap.com, Gameface, and 88DB. I just keep on pressing the F5 button on these three pages to get the latest updates from those kind individuals who post the scores and game events while watching.

It sure must be intensely exciting in Araneta and even in the homes of those watching the game from TV. I can tell because I am alone here sitting here in my computer and I can feel the tension. Haha!

Last I checked, it's an 80-77 overtime win by Ateneo. Congrats to the Eagles!

Of course, I am disappointed with the loss. From what I've been reading, the Archers were terrible at the free throw line, a couple of players were not able to step up, and quite a number of turnovers were committed.

But, I'm still proud of the Archers! Hope they do better next time. Special mention to JV Casio for leading the La Salle comeback in the 4th quarter.

Animo La Salle!