LA Salle Green Hills reached the Big Dance yesterday, thanks to a weapon that its rookie coach, Renren Ritualo, used to near perfection in his heydays in the UAAP and PBA– the three-pointer.
CJ Mesias boomed in a clutch three-pointer in the last 26.9 seconds before James Ison sank two free throws with only 3.3 ticks left that lifted La Salle Green Hills to a pulsating 89-84 decision over San Beda High School in their knockout Final Four duel in the 98th NCAA juniors’ basketball tournament at the San Andres Sports Complex.
Manuel Pablo banged in 25 points and collared 19 rebounds for the Greenies while Seven Gagate chipped in 20 markers, nine boards and three assists.
Ison, who committed what could have been a costly turnover with 8.7 seconds to go but redeemed himself with a steal that led to his trip to the stripe, finished with 12 points, six caroms, and five dimes for La Salle Green Hills.
Santi Romero and Rod Alian had 12 and 11 points, respectively, for the Greenies, who completed the stunning ouster of the second seed and twice-to-beat erstwhile defending champion Red Cubs.
La Salle Green Hills, which will play in the finals for the first time since 2018, ripped San Beda 92-79 four days ago to send their semifinals showdown to a deciding match.
Game 1 of the best-of-3 finals pitting eliminations pacesetter Letran and the Greenies is set on Monday at the same venue.
The Squires trounced Mapua 83-78 last Monday to gain the first finals berth and ended a 14-year absence in the finals.
“I have to give it to the players. Nakita naman kung ano ang ginawa nila. They poured their hearts out. They dug deep and para manalo sa larong ito, you really have to dig deep and want it more than the other team which happened,” Ritualo said.
“That was a big three (by Mesias). Ang sabi ko sa kanila, if you will take it, take it with no hesitation. No time to hesitate especially in a do-or-die game. You have to give it to CJ Mesias for making that big shot,” he added.
La Salle Green Hills took a 46-41 lead at the halfway mark and still enjoyed a 63-62 buffer heading into the payoff period.
Chris Hubilla paced the Red Cubs with 37 points and 14 rebounds, while John Lopez added 13 markers.
Jharmaine Lecciones and Nicko Lorenzo also got 11 and 10 points, respectively, for San Beda.
