Falcons stun Archers, sneak into PCCL finals

Adamson banked on a steady second half to turn back La Salle, 67-59, and surprisingly sneak its way to the finals of the 2010 Philippine Collegiate Champions League at the Arena in San Juan. The Falcons spoiled a blockbuster La Salle-Ateneo finale by coming back from a first-quarter deficit and unloading a big fourth-quarter spurt all the way to victory. The win sent the Falcons into a best-of-three titular showdown with the Eagles, who beat the University of Cebu Webmasters. Starting the game flat and producing only eight points in the opening quarter, the Falcons came back strong and ended the game with a flurry. A telling 18-3 run, capped by Lester Alvarez’s two free throws, gave the San Marcelino-based cagers their biggest lead of the game, 59-48, with still 4:35 left in the game. That big run was enough to take the fight out of La Salle, which drew 14 points from Sam Marata, the only double-digit scorer for the Taft-based dribblers. “I know na mahirap talagang talunin itong La Salle kaya pinag-aralan talaga namin na talunin sila. Na-identify ko yung scorers nila kaya na-contain namin,’’ said Adamson head coach Leo Austria. “Nung first half, maganda yung shooting nila. Napagod din sila nung second half at bumaba yung shooting because of our zone defense. We did the same to them sa UAAP at nahirapan sila.’’ Alex Nuyles finished with a game-high 15 points with five rebounds, while Eric Camson came a rebound away from a double-double with his 12 points and nine boards for the Falcons. Alvarez added 11 points. The Green Archers raced to a 15-4 run in the first period, but the Falcons quickly got back into the game when they outscored their rivals, 15-2, in a big second-quarter run. That enabled coach Leo Austria and his boys to grab the lead, 23-20, with 4:44 left in the second period. The surprising Falcons, which also upended the FEU Tamaraws in the Elite Eight stage, now hope to continue its giant-killing run against the tourney's defending champions and reigning UAAP titlists. - KY, RCJ, GMANews.TV