Far Eastern University‘s Kirby Mongcopa in action against De La Salle University in UAAP Season 88 men’s basketball. Photo from UAAP Media.
MANILA (UPDATED) — Far Eastern University stayed in the Final 4 race of UAAP Season 88 men’s basketball all thanks to the heroics of Kirby Mongcopa.
The rookie drained the go-ahead basket in crunch time to power the Tamaraws to an 84-83 victory over De La Salle University on Sunday at the Araneta Coliseum in Cubao and complete his 10 points, 10 rebounds, and seven assists.
"La Salle is a championship team, and I kept saying to myself we have to beat one of the big teams to stay alive," said Far Eastern U head coach Sean Chambers, as they tallied their fifth win in 12 games.
Equally impressive were Janrey Pasaol who finished with 17 points and seven rebounds, Mo Konateh who posted a 14-point, nine-rebound outing, Jorick Bautista who had all of his 12 in the second half, and Jed Daa who scattered 10 markers and six boards.
But it was Mongcopa who stood the tallest, as when the Tams trailed 82-83 with under two minutes left, he converted the lay-up off a Pasaol assist with only 27 seconds left for an 84-83 lead.
While this left the Green Archers enough time to retaliate, Jacob Cortez and JC Macalalag missed their respective shots to win the game and complete the 14-point fightback.
Earl Abadam led La Salle with a game-high 18 points, while Mike Phillips poured in a 14-point, 19-rebound outing, but La Salle fell to fourth place with five defeats in 11 games.
Macalalag also had 14 points, while Luis Pablo and Cortez followed with 11 and 10 markers, respectively, in their loss.
The Scores:
FEU 84 – Pasaol 17, Konateh 14, Bautista 12, Mongcopa 10, Daa 10, Felipe 9, Montemayor 7, Owens 5, Ona 0, Jones 0.
DLSU 83 – Abadam 18, Macalalag 14, Phillips 14, Pablo 11, Cortez 10, Nwankwo 4, Gollena 4, Dungo 4, Quines 2, Melencio 2.
Quarterscores: 16-19, 46-36, 67-64, 84-83.