Bullpups maul Junior Archers to join Blue Eaglets in UAAP finals

By Dugout Philippines

NU wasted no time in eliminating La Salle-Zobel from the UAAP juniors basketball stepladder playoffs after a 61-45 win at the Blue Eagle Gym in Quezon City.

The Bullpups, who owned a twice-to-beat advantage against the Junior Archers for finishing second in the eliminations, opened the match on an 11-0 run and stretched the lead to as much as 19 early in the third quarter.

Despite a mini-run to close the third, the Junior Archers did not break the 11-point barrier as the Bullpups maintained the double-digit edge until the end of their wire-to-wire win.

John Clemente led NU with 14 points on 6-of-11 shooting, five rebounds, and three assists, while Justine Baltazar added 19 points on 6-of-8 shooting, 11 rebounds, and two blocks. Mark Dyke had a relatively quiet game as he only made nine points, although he made 13 rebounds and a block.

Aljun Melecio scored 15 points for La Salle-Zobel, but he only shot 4-of-22 from the field.

The Bullpups will take on the Ateneo Blue Eaglets in the finals beginning on Friday at the FilOil Flying V Arena.

However, this will be the exact opposite of last season's finals as NU, who completed a 16-0 season sweep, will now have a thrice-to-beat disadvantage against Ateneo, which finished 14-0 in the eliminations, gaining the outright finals berth.

Box Scores:
NU 61-Clemente 14, Baltazar 13, Dyke 9, Manalang 9, Sta. Ana 5, Calma 5, Ferreras 4, Penano 2, Atienza 0, Claveria 0, De Guzman 0, Mina 0, Saquian 0   

La Salle-Zobel 45-Melecio Alj. 15, Banzon 14, Romero 4, Melecio Ale. 3, Fortuna 3, Isaac 2, Paraiso 2, Sario 1, Webb 1, Cabarrus 0, Tongco 0

Quarterscores: 15-5, 30-18, 42-31, 61-45