Fresh from a trip to Dubai, the Ateneo Blue Eagles continued their preseason campaign with a rusty, but nonetheless, winning performance, defeating the Lyceum Pirates, 92-77, on April 27 at the San Juan Arena.
Bannered by Greg Slaughter’s double-double performance of 17 points and 12 rebounds, Ateneo’s inside prominence was too strong for the Pirates’ perimeter shooting.
Right from the start, Blue Eagles head coach Norman Black opted to play big, starting Slaughter, Frank Golla, Nico Salva, Kirk Long and Emman Monfort.
But, it would be the Pirates that got the better start as the Blue Eagles succumbed to sloppy turnovers and sluggish play—Monfort keeping the team at bay with two treys in the first five minutes of the regulation.
The defending UAAP champions slowly found their form midway through the quarter. Substitutions of Justin Chua and JP Erram stabilized the team with further inside presence. The first 10 minutes ended in favor of the Eagles, 22-16.
With a comfortable lead, Black experimented with the younger members of the team. Former Blue Eaglets Kiefer Ravena and Von Pessumal, and other new additions, Gywne Capacio and Mark Tallo, clocked in minutes throughout the second canto.
The balance between the veteran players and the young blood seemed to have worked effectively as the Blue Eagles extended their lead to 15 points, ending the half at 48-33.
Lyceum would take one last swing at the game as their perimeter shooting hit full swing in the third. With the Pirates shooting a majority of their seven treys in the quarter, Ateneo’s lead was cut to five deep into the quarter. But as it had been throughout the game, the big men in Blue took over. At the end of the third, the lead was restored to a comfortable seven points.
To cap off the win, the Blue Eagles tightened their perimeter defense, limiting the Pirates’ open looks. Ateneo played the fourth quarter at relative ease, featuring highlight reels of alley oops and good link-up plays.
Along with Slaughter, three other Eagles hit double digits; Salva, Monfort and Ravena put up 14, 12 and 11 points respectively.
In continuation of the FilOil Flying V Preseason Cup, the Blue Eagles willµ next play the University of Santo Tomas Growling Tigers on April 30, once again at the San Juan Arena.
Box Score:
ATENEO: Slaughter 17; Salva 14; Monfort 12; Ravena 11; Long 8; Gonzaga 8; Erram 8; Chua 7; Golla 2; Tiongson 2; Capacio 2; Pessumal 1
LYCEUM: Guevarra 20; Cayabyab 17; Foronda 12; Ko 10; Mallari 9; Azores 3; Napiza 3; Laude 2; Lacap 1
