In an epic encounter, the De La Salle University Green Archers fought tooth and nail against bitter rival Ateneo de Manila University Blue Eagles at the UAAP season 85 basketball tournament Sunday—ending with a victory for the DLSU boys, and effectively putting an end to the Green Archers’ seven straight losses against Ateneo.
The game closed with a final score of 83-78, with La Salle shooting 44.1% from the field, limiting Ateneo to just 32.6% shooting. Ateneo was leading in many departments but eventually succumbed to La Salle’s stifling defense.
DLSU Coach Derrick Pumaren pushed his boys hard during practice and made sure the team was prepared mentally for this grueling matchup. “…part of the gameplan was to defend the perimeter,” the coach says in an interview. “We are glad we are able to do it in the last three quarters.”
Schonny Winston finished with 25 points and Evan Nelle had 10. Meanwhile, the 6-foot-8 forward Michael Phillips finished with 6 points, 11 rebounds, 1 block, and 1 chipped tooth courtesy of an incident that involved him diving with such intensity for a loose ball during the game. This explains the photos of Phillips with a broken tooth that circulated on social media Monday.
The Filipino-American player tells ANCX that the collision happened during the first half of the game. “I was on defense and there was a loose ball, so I dove for it on the ground. Then another player landed on top of me, and my face was knocked down against the floor while my mouth was unfortunately open,” he says.
The 20-year-old athlete even saw a part of his tooth “fly out into the out-of-bounds.” But after he got up, the ball was in their possession, so he just continued playing.
It was not rare to see these two teams go at it with such intensity during their encounters, but having a tooth flying is definitely taking it a step further.
We asked Phillips if he already had his tooth fixed after the unfortunate incident. He says he underwent a root canal and might have to get a crown as well later on. He also showed us a photo of himself flashing a big smile after the successful dental procedure.
“I’m extremely grateful to our management, especially Sir Raffy Villavicencio, for helping me get my tooth fixed the morning after. Not even 24 hours after the incident, my smile was back!” says the La Salle rookie.
After a hard-fought game against the Blue Eagles, was the mishap all worth it for him? “After everything, I can say a win against Ateneo and the end of our losing streak was definitely worth my tooth!”