Photo by Christie K. Lim

COACH NORMAN Black achieved his 100th victory as the head coach of the Ateneo Blue Eagles as his boys routed the winless University (UE) Red Warriors, 68-51, at the SM Mall of Asia Arena on August 4, Saturday.

The defending champions exploded for a 17-point third quarter to seal the win in a match that had the makings of an upset in the first half of play. With this win, the Blue Eagles improve to a 5-1 record and claim the number one spot in the standings. UE remains at the bottom of the table at 0-4.

Ateneo started off slowly in the first three minutes, as UE took the lead after five quick points from Jay-ar Sumido.  The Blue Eagles finally led after Kiefer Ravena put the Blue Eagles up from the free throw line at 8-7 with 6:18 on the clock. Highlighted by a Greg Slaughter dunk off an alley-oop from Nico Salva, Ateneo went on a 6-2 run that gave the Blue and White some breathing room, 14-9.

Hungry for their first win of the season, however, the Red Warriors took advantage of Ateneo’s turnovers and missed shots to fuel a 6-1 run. A long shot by Bong Galanza tied the game at 15-all with 3:00 to go in the first quarter.

A three from the corner by Tonino Gonzaga put the Blue and White back on top, but the Red Warriors responded by scoring on transition and converting turnovers. After the first quarter, UE was only facing a one-point deficit, 19-18. Former Red Cub Chris Javier played strong in the post for UE on both ends of the floor. He scored from the perimeter and guarded Slaughter well.

UE’s confidence carried over to the second quarter as Coach Jerry Cordiñera’s boys took the lead, 23-21, after Galanza’s second three-pointer of the game at the 7:24 mark. Ravena and Slaughter retook the lead for Ateneo, but streaky play by Shej Roi Sumang and another three by Galanza brought the score to 35-34 with 51 seconds before halftime. Thanks to Ravena, who converted both his charities in the closing minutes, Ateneo was up by three at the half, at 37-34.

At the restart, the Katipunan-based squad still could not find their rhythm offensively. Luckily for them, the Red Warriors were having similar problems as they suddenly found it difficult to make their shots.

The tides changed when Greg Slaughter converted Ateneo’s first field goal of the second half with 6:22 remaining. Ateneo led, 40-37, after the seven-foot Slaughter completed a three-point play. From then on, the Blue and White finally kicked things into overdrive with a 14-2 run to end third with a comfortable 15-point lead at 54-39.

Coach Norman Black then dispatched his second stringers for the last canto, who jacked the lead up to as much as 23 thanks after Tonino Gonzaga’s layup with 7:00 left.

UE was scoreless since Gene Belleza’s conversion at 3:49 left in the third quarter until Javier was successful on a three-point play with four minutes to go. Nevertheless, the lead had already proved insurmountable for the Red Warriors.

With victory in plain sight, Black inserted Von Pessumal, Gwyne Capacio, Isaac Lim, Kris Porter and Giboy Babilonia in the last two minutes. From then on, the young Ateneo five cruised to the finish line, topped off with a Pessumal layup to end the game, 68-51.

Similar to their previous game, the Blue and White relied on a third quarter rally to mount a considerable advantage over their opponents. They scored 17 points while holding their opponents to only 5 in the third quarter.

The Red Warriors also found themselves in foul trouble in all four quarters, committing 24 in comparison to Ateneo’s 15. This resulted in more free throws for the Blue Eagles who converted 19 of 29 while UE made 11 from 19.

Ateneo also led in the rebounding department, hauling down 55 to UE’s 47.

Despite not getting their usual amount of minutes, Slaughter tallied his third double-double of the season with 14 points and 10 rebounds while Ravena contributed 12 points, 5 assists and 3 rebounds.

Javier did his part for the Red Warriors with a game-high 16 points coupled with 6 boards.

Tallying his 100th win in his stint as the Ateneo’s most successful coach, Norman Black attributed it to his players and coaching staff. “Those guys played a big part in any type of success the Ateneo team had.” He also modestly pondered his feat in relation to that of UAAP legends Baby Dalupan and Franz Pumaren.

Black will be looking for his 101st win in the replay of last season’s finals as Ateneo will cap off its first round against the FEU Tamaraws at 4 PM on Sunday, August 12 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Box scores:

Ateneo – 68: Slaughter 14, Ravena 12, Gonzaga 9, Tiongson 7, Salva 7, Buenafe 6, Sumalinog 2, Pessumal 2, Golla 2, Erram 2, Elorde 2, Capacio 2, Chua 1, Porter 0, Lim 0, Babilonia 0

UE – 50: Javier 16, Galanza 12, Sumang 10, Hernandez 6, Sumido 5, Belleze 2, Alberto 0, Villarias 0 Valdez 0, Santos 0, Razon 0, Olayon 0, Mena 0, Flores 0, Duran 0, Duncil 0