THE ATENEO Blue Eagles defeated the University of the East (UE) Red Warriors, 84-69, at the Mall of Asia Arena, Pasay City.
This puts the Blue Eagles at a 3-2 win-loss record in the University Athletics Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Men’s basketball tournament.
Anton Asistio led the way with a career high of 21 points, including a trio of downtown bombs, which enabled the Blue Eagles to run away to a 16-2 lead in the first quarter. Adrian Wong also stepped up after a few below-average games, contributing 17 points and three assists before fouling out.
On the other hand, UE was led by Alvin Pasaol, who stepped up from the bench to contribute 22 points and eight boards. He was followed by Edson Batiller, who contributed 11 points, one off his season average.
Unlike the previous games, the match was marred with hard play and a number of fouls from both teams. UE recorded 38 fouls while Ateneo notched 28. Philip Manalang and Pasaol fouled out for UE, while Wong was forced to leave the game early for Ateneo.
The first quarter was an Ateneo domination, with Asistio drawing first blood with a three. After Paul Varilla knocks a basket for the Red Warriors, the Blue Eagles exerted their dominion in the quarter, coming out on a 16-2 run before the Red Warriors were able to get the lid off the basket. Chibueze Ikeh, then, ends the quarter in favor of the Blue Eagles (20-9).
However, the Red Warriors battled their way out for a comeback with Pasaol leading the 11-0 run. Mike Nieto stopped the bleeding as UE incurs a penalty that allowed the Blue Eagle score one out of his two charities. The quarter was also plagued with fouls later on, as UE’S OmarLarupay was called for an unsportsmanlike foul and Go was charged with a technical for delaying the game. With concescutive errors from the Katipunan-based squad and a three from Philip Manalang, the Red Warriors came close to the Blue Eagles by the halftime break (32-30).
The third quarter opens with Wong being able to sink one to extend Ateneo’s lead. However, Varilla manages to overtake the Blue Eagles’ score (32-34) and both teams enter into a seesaw battle of shooting from the line until Asistio was entitled to three shots care of Manalang and the Blue Eagle was able to hit all three (43-38). The Blue Eagles’ lead extends as Mike Nieto splashes back-to-back corner threes to gain Ateneo’s momentum before the end of the third quarter (58-46).
The final period looked to be the most foul-ridden in the match, taking 46 minutes to complete the quarter. The Blue Eagles opened the quarter by drawing fouls, which sent them to the line to hit their freebies. This continued to extend the Blue Eagles’ lead until Thirdy Ravena and Varilla collided for a loose ball scuffle, leaving the Red Warrior with a cut on his scalp. As the game went on becoming more physical, a four-point run by the Blue Eagles and more fouls coming from the Red Warriors allowed the Blue and White to end the game as victors.
The next game for the Ateneo Blue Eagles will be against the Univeristy of the Philippines (UP) Fighting Maroons, with former head coach Bo Perasol at the helm. The game will be on September 28, 2016, 2:00pm at the Mall of Asia Arena, Pasay City.
Box Scores:
Ateneo: Asistio-21, Wong-17, Mike Nieto-11, Ikeh-11, Ravena-7, Matt Nieto-7, Verano-4, Tolentino-3, Go-3
UE: Pasaol-22, Batiller-11, Varilla-7, Abanto-6, Derige-6, Charcos-4, Olayon-3, Manalang-3, De Leon-2, Palma-2, Penuela-2, Larupay-1
*Editor’s note: Information has been updated in order to more clearly present the events that took place.
