Four good, grown-up quarters.
That’s it.
That’s the whole equation. Solve that, and you solve National U.
Which is hilarious in its own way, because the Green Archers have yet to solve NU this season — which technically makes La Salle the underdog here, if you’re into labels. (We aren’t. But fine.)
Still, the record is the record, and it means the Archers walk into this one wearing that familiar, slightly uncomfortable underdog hoodie.
The wild part? In Round 1, La Salle basically hand-washed, pressed, and folded that game for three quarters. Up 61–55 heading into the fourth, shooting a respectable 37.5%, outmuscling NU 33–27 on the glass, dishing out a tidy 14 assists, and treating turnovers like a rare antique (only five!). Meanwhile, the Bulldogs coughed up 13.
Everything was humming… until the Gelo Santiago dive into Mason Amos’ knee flipped the universe upside down like someone kicked the WiFi router.
From there? NU went full jailbreak mode — 27–17 in the fourth, La Salle suddenly playing like someone had replaced their Nike basketball with a bar of soap, and the defense got shredded: NU shot 63.5% overall, 67% from deep, 62.5% inside.
Final score: 78–82.
Fourth-quarter collapse. Both ends. Brutal.
Second meeting? Oh, the bite came early. Same pain, different quarter.
La Salle actually started great — a 26–22 first quarter capped by a Mike Phillips “why not” running triple.
That was the only celebration. And then the music stopped.
Once Vhoris Marasigan got tossed on that infamous Omar John FAMAS reel, the whole La Salle engine sputtered. NU carpet-bombed the second quarter 28–12, turned a tight game into a 50–38 halftime canyon, and from there the Archers were chasing ghosts.
And here’s the thing about these Bulldogs: spotting them double digits is like giving a bulldog the leash and asking politely if he’ll come back.
These Jeff Napa Bulldogs…..won’t.
But—and this is a big but—both losses were symptoms of the same disease: inconsistency.
The polar opposite of the version of La Salle that steamrolled UP and grounded the Blue Eagles’ flight path with military precision.
Every NU momentum shift was triggered by extras:
— the Amos incident in Game 1
— the Vhoris ejection in Game 2
Moments that punched holes in the Archers’ boat, and NU didn’t wait to sink it. Great teams don’t.
But here’s where the story shifts: EXPERIENCE.
La Salle’s core has played more playoff basketball than NU has in years. These guys have lived inside elimination games, felt the hand of pressure on their shoulders, and still delivered wearing green.
Motor Mike. Vhoris. JC Macalalag. EJ Gollena. Bright Nwankwo. Doy Dungo. Luis Pablo. Earl Abadam.
And then there’s Jacob Cortez — who didn’t just “play” in the NCAA Finals — he was a headline.
NU? New territory. Fresh terrain. The postseason is a place where composure becomes currency, and La Salle has actual savings.
So the key is simple: lean on experience, lock into basketball and only basketball, and string together four real, fully caffeinated quarters.
Because when La Salle taps into that version of itself?
The one built from muscle, poise, fire, scars, swagger?
The Greens are lethal.
And win Game One, this will push these jittery Bulldogs down that slippery slope of self-doubt.
ANIMO LA SALLE!
BEAT NU!!!!
