THE ATENEO Blue Eagles fell to the Adamson Soaring Falcons after a last-second turnaround jumper from Dawn Ochea, 62-61 at the Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City.
Robbie Manalang top-scored for the Soaring Falcons with 15 points on 14 shots. He was assisted by super rookie Jerrick Ahanmisi who notched 13 markers on just 6 shots while contributing a trio of assists and a pair of boards as well.
Meanwhile, Anton Asistio led the Blue Eagles with 12 markers, while big man Kris Porter chipped in 8 on four shots, while going 2/3 from beyond the arc.
Mike Nieto had an all-around game, with 7 points, 8 boards and three assists as he stepped up to replace the injured Aaron Black.
The first half was a tit-and-tat affair, as both teams were not able to pull away. The first quarter was dominated by the Adamson Falcons, as they held a six-point lead after the first. Thirdy Ravena also had two quick fouls to start the quarter, resulting to him only playing 2 minutes in the first half.
The second quarter featured Ateneo bouncing back as Coach Tab Baldwin brought in Jolo Mendoza off the bench, who immediately hit a three for the Blue and White. Anton Asistio also caught fire, which forced Adamson to cover their wings and allowing the Katipunan-based squad to catch up.
The Blue Eagles drew first blood in the second half and dominated, as the the lead balooned to double digits after the third quarter. A pair of threes from Manalang and Ahanmisi, however, trimmed the lead and pushed the game to a 60-all deadlock.
Ikeh had the chance to secure the lead for the Blue and White, but his conversion of only one charity left the game open for the Soaring Falcons, and Ochea took the chance and hit the dagger with 1.9 seconds left.
Thirdy Ravena, who only played 12 minutes because of foul trouble, had a chance to take the win for Ateneo but he missed a turnaround fadeaway at the buzzer.
Ateneo’s next game will be against the University of the East on September 24, 2016 at the Mall of Asia Arena, Pasay City.
Ateneo: Asistio – 12, Porter – 8, Mi. Nieto – 7, Ma. Nieto – 7, Tolentino – 6, Ikeh – 5, Mendoza – 5, Wong -4, Verano – 4, Ravena – 3
Adamson: Manalang -15, Ahanmisi – 13, Sarr – 13, Manganti – 6, Espelata – 4, Mustre – 4, Bernardo – 3, Tundcab – 2, Ochea – 2
