By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
Senior Reporter
THE defending champions Ateneo Blue Eagles earned a direct trip to the finals of Season 82 of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) after completing a sweep of the elimination round with an 86-64 victory over the University of the Philippines (UP) Fighting Maroons on Wednesday at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.
Displaying their trademark steadiness on both ends of the court throughout the contest, the Eagles were not to be denied of win number 14 in the ongoing tournament to roll straight to the finals and render the semifinals a step-ladder.
Earlier in the day, the De La Salle Green Archers and University of the East Red Warriors ended their Season 82 campaigns on a winning note, defeating the Adamson Soaring Falcons and National University Bulldogs, 89-63 and 79-77, respectively.
Ange Kouame and Thirdy Ravena helped Ateneo get early traction, 9-4, with five minutes lapsing in the opening quarter.
UP though would fashion a charge back in the next minute on the lead of Bright Akhuetie and Kobe Paras, overtaking the Eagles, 10-4.
Momentum swung back and forth after, before the count settled at 21-20, with the Maroons on top, after the first 10 minutes.
The nip-and-tuck race continued in the second frame with the two teams fighting to a score of 31-27 in favor of the Eagles midway into the quarter.
Ateneo though made a strong push the rest of the way and built a double-digit cushion, 45-32, at the half.
At the start of the third canto Akhuetie and Paras tried to jolt the Maroons to a fight back.
But the Eagles kept UP at bay as they further extended their lead to 20 points, 58-38, at the 4:21 mark with Will Navarro making his presence felt on offense.
Ateneo continued to pour it on to build a 65-44 advantage heading into the payoff quarter.
With momentum greatly in their favor, the Eagles came out swinging to start the fourth with Isaac Go on the firing end.
It was a 24-point lead for Ateneo, 73-49, at the eight-minute mark.
UP continued to show fight but with little headway.
The score was at 75-55, and the Eagles still on top, with 3:40 left in the game and it was all Ateneo from there.
Kouame top-scored for the Eagles with 20 points to go along with 12 rebounds and five blocks, followed by SJ Belangel with 14 points, Navarro 13 and Ravena 11.
For UP it was Paras who led with 13 points with Akhuetie and Javi Gomez De Liaño adding 11 points each.
“We know this is a huge accomplishment as far as basketball is concerned, going undefeated. But the job is not done for us. This is just the season before the season,” said Ateneo coach Tab Baldwin of their 14-0 accomplishment, the first in the UAAP in more than a decade.
“It’s going to be harder for us but I’m proud of the effort of these guys,” he added.
EXITING WITH A WIN
In the preceding games, meanwhile, La Salle (7-7) and UE (4-10) exited the tournament with victories.
One-and-done player Jamie Malonzo saved his best for last as he led the Archers to the 89-63 rout of the Falcons, finishing with 34 points, boosted by seven triples, and 12 rebounds.
Justine Baltazar also tallied a double-double with his 14 points and 13 rebounds in a game where La Salle took a lead as big as 30, 66-36, late in the third frame.
Graduating Archers player Andrei Caracut also had 14 markers in his final UAAP game.
For UE, it was another one-and-done in Rey Suerte who showed the way.
Suerte, a star player in Cebu, uncorked 25 points, including the go-ahead basket late in the game, to cap off his short UE career and tow his side to the 79-77 win over NU.
With their losses, meanwhile, Adamson and NU capped off their campaigns with 4-10 and 2-12 records, respectively.
