THE ATENEO Blue Eagles opened their second round campaign in style, defeating their fellow Katipunan-based counterparts, the University of the Philippines (UP) Fighting Maroons, 83-66, in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 81 Men’s Basketball Tournament on Sunday, October 14, at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.
The Blue Eagles were efficient from beyond the arc in today’s match, as the Blue and White converted 8 of its 20 attempts (40%) from deep to tie their season-high previously set against the De La Salle University (DLSU) Green Archers.
Thirdy Ravena produced a dominant showing in today’s affairs as he racked up a double-double of 21 points, 11 rebounds, 2 steals, and 2 blocks, in a superb all-around performance from the Blue Eagle swingman.
[4th Quarter] Thirdy turns on the turbo, gets free for the reverse layup!
Ateneo 56 UP 48#UAAPBasketball pic.twitter.com/2yhA1jjKlz
— Gerrick C. Limsiy (@Rick_TheGUIDON) October 14, 2018
Tyler Tio, meanwhile, stepped up brilliantly in Matt Nieto’s absence due to an injured finger, as the former Xavier School Stallion put up 12 points and 5 assists on 5/9 (56%) shooting from the field.
[4th Quarter] Tyler Tio lobs it up to Kouame for the SLAM! 5:28 left in the game.
Ateneo 66 UP 56#UAAPBasketball pic.twitter.com/Fn9zcgHCsF
— Gerrick C. Limsiy (@Rick_TheGUIDON) October 14, 2018
Paul Desiderio opened the first quarter on a hot start—seeing UP off to a 5-0 run two minutes in with a triple and an isolation step-back. About a minute later, the Blue Eagles would then put their own points up on the board through an and-one from Angelo Kouame, who grabbed an offensive rebound to finish strongly at the rim. The Fighting Maroons also looked to push the pace on both ends this quarter—scoring with a number of good outlet passes, while defending the Blue Eagles full-court with a 2-2-1 full-court press after made baskets. The Blue Eagles however, clamped down on defense to see themselves through the quarter with a slim three-point lead, 18-15.
Both Gian Mamuyac and SJ Belangel made their impact felt early on in the second, as the pair contributed an elbow three and a stepback jumper from the corner, respectively, to maintain the lead for the Blue and White, 25-22. On the other end, Ateneo continued to remain resilient on defense, as a steal for a breakaway lay-up from Tio prompted UP to call a timeout with their deficit standing at six, 33-27.
Adrian Wong also showed his hustle this quarter, putting his body on the line by going full stretch for a dive on a loose ball late in the quarter. Wong’s efforts however, saw the Fil-Am guard lose a tooth, which had him substituted off to a round of applause from the Blue Eagle faithful. Eventually, the Blue Eagles entered halftime with a six-point advantage, 35-29.
Tio displayed his scoring ability to open the third quarter, taking Javi Gomez de Liaño off the dribble to see his scoring tally hit nine points about one minute in. Desiderio, however, answered back with numerous layups and open looks for his teammates, sparking a 12-0 run to see the Fighting Maroons pull to within three points, 44-41. Despite being tied 48-48 at one point, the Blue Eagles found themselves up 54-48 heading into the final period after Jolo Mendoza’s five points in the final minute.
[3rd Quarter] Ateneo breaks down UP’s full court press to find a wide open Jolo Mendoza for three!
Ateneo 52 UP 48#UAAPBasketball pic.twitter.com/IWPOb6GSJj
— Gerrick C. Limsiy (@Rick_TheGUIDON) October 14, 2018
Switching to a 2-3 zone, the Blue Eagles seemed to cause the Fighting Maroons some problems on offense, as UP Head Coach Bo Perasol was forced to call a timeout about two minutes in with his team trailing by eleven, 61-50. Tempers flared midway through the quarter when a complaint on a loose ball in midcoast resulted in Javi Gomez de Liaño’s ejection due to his incurrence of a second technical foul.
The momentum started to shift as Tio’s alley-oop to Koume at the five-minute mark sparked the offense for the Blue Eagles. They ended the quarter on a 13-6 run, highlighted by Ravena’s vicious dunk and Anton Asistio’s corner three in the dying seconds of the game, for an emphatic 83-66 victory.
[4th Quarter] Tyler Tio lobs it up to Kouame for the SLAM! 5:28 left in the game.
Ateneo 66 UP 56#UAAPBasketball pic.twitter.com/Fn9zcgHCsF
— Gerrick C. Limsiy (@Rick_TheGUIDON) October 14, 2018
[4th Quarter] Near steal for UP, but Thirdy recovers it to Tio who drops it off to Asistio for three to beat the shot clock buzzer! Diego Dario gets his own triple on the other end as the game clock expires!
Ateneo 83 UP 66#UAAPBasketball pic.twitter.com/D3jnUMxzqs
— Gerrick C. Limsiy (@Rick_TheGUIDON) October 14, 2018
Tio emphasized the importance of the team’s “next man up” philosophy, especially since they were without their starting floor general. “When Matt went down, obviously we were hurt because he’s one of our better players; he’s one of our leaders,” he said. “I’d like to give props also to Jolo, Adrian, and SJ-we all just wanted to fill the void that Matt left.”
The win puts the Blue Eagles at solo first with a 6-2 record in the tourney. The Blue Eagles face fellow first-seed competitors, the Far Eastern University Tamaraws, at 4:00 PM on Saturday, October 20 at the SMART Araneta Coliseum in Cubao.
Quarter scores (Ateneo-UP): 18-15, 35-29, 54-48, 83-66
Box scores:
Ateneo (83): Ravena – 20, Tio – 12, Verano – 10, Mendoza – 10, Asistio – 9, Kouame – 9, Mamuyac – 6, Belangel – 4, Go – 2
UP (66): Akhuetie – 20, Desierto – 16, Manzo – 8, Ju. Gomez de Liaño – 5, Ja. Gomez de Liaño – 4, Dario – 3, Jaboneta – 2, Prado – 2, Murrell – 2, Vito -2 , Gozum – 2
