THE ATENEO Blue Eagles leaned on their strong fourth-quarter push to come from behind and stun the Colegio de San Juan de Letran Knights, 90-85, in the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) Invitational Games, earlier today at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City.
The battle between the men’s basketball champions of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) and National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) were held alongside three other collegiate exhibition test events as part of the SBP’s preparations for the Philippines’ 2023 FIBA World Cup hosting.
Rookie Mason Amos led the Blue and White in scoring with 16 points, along with four rebounds and two assists. Meanwhile, Jared Brown followed closely with 15 points and four assists.
The Blue Eagles got off to a hot start with a 12-3 run, behind Amos’ early five points and their excellent ball movement to take an early nine-point lead. However, momentum shifted as soon as Kurt Reyson broke the Knights’ scoring drought with a quick basket. Letran proceeded to score seven unanswered points to tie the game at 12. Both sides then traded buckets until the Knights broke away with an and-one play from the shifty Reyson to end the first canto ahead, 19-15.
Despite a back-and-forth affair opening the second quarter, Ateneo’s turnovers and poor shooting led to an 11-3 run by the Knights to give Letran a 32-25 lead. Looking to cut the deficit, Brown came up big with back-to-back deuces to bring the Blue Eagles to within four. However, a Kint Ariar three-point play, coupled with shots from Reyson, swung the momentum back in CSJL’s favor, 40-33. Reyson’s hot streak continued with a reverse layup to give Letran the advantage at the end of the half, 46-41.
In the third quarter, Ateneo’s new foreign student athlete Joseph Obasa got into foul trouble. After grabbing a steal leading to a fastbreak dunk for himself, Obasa committed two straight fouls that prompted Coach Baldwin to insert rookie center Kobe Demisana into the matchup. In Obasa’s absence, Demisana dominated on both ends of the floor, anchoring Ateneo’s defense and chipping in five valuable offensive rebounds and putbacks on the other end. Despite going down 41-50 early on in the quarter, Demisana helped Ateneo chip into the lead and end the quarter down only a single possession, 66-68.
With the game within reach, Demisana knocked down a huge basket to tie the game at 68. After an answer by the Knights, Matthew De Luna responded with a corner triple to give Ateneo their first lead of the half, 71-70. The lead shifted a couple more times with both squads refusing to bow out. However, a quick steal by Sean Quitevis resulted in a long-range bomb by Brown, cutting the lead down to one and forcing Letran to call for time, 81-82.
With the defending NCAA champs in the penalty, the Blue and White exploited the defense by attacking the paint, creating chances at the charity stripe. Free throws by Amos and Brown gave the Blue Eagles an 86-84 advantage with a minute left in the game. A costly miss by Reyson in the dying stages led to a strong move by Andrew Bongo in transition, extending Ateneo’s lead to four with 40 seconds remaining. Lebron Nieto put the finishing touches with two points from the line to secure the win for Ateneo, 90-85.
When asked about their opponent’s prestige as the three-time defending NCAA champions, Head Coach Tab Baldwin responded that it was not a factor. “We just wanted a good game, and Letran is always gonna give one for our gang,” Baldwin said.
“Just a couple of little schemes in the end to try and make sure they didn’t have opportunities to beat us, and the boys executed it pretty well,” the veteran tactician added.
The Blue and White will return for action in the Pinoyliga Cup Finals against the National University Bulldogs tomorrow, June 29, at 12:30 PM at the Villar Coliseum in the City of Las Pinas.
Box Scores:
Ateneo (90): Amos – 16, Brown – 15, Bongo – 11, Demisana – 10, Nieto – 10, Obasa – 9, De Luna – 6, Gamber – 6, Garcia – 5, Asoro – 2, Ong – 0, Quitevis – 0
CSJL (85): Reyson – 25, Monje – 20, Santos – 15, Ariar – 7, Galvez – 6, Jumao-as – 5, Go – 3, Nunag – 2, Tolentino – 2, Bojorcelo – 0, Morales – 0
Quarter Score:
Ateneo-CSJL: 15-19, 41-46, 66-68, 90-85
