MANILA – Ateneo de Manila University Blue Eagles recovered from a slow start to score a 71-62 repeat win against rival De La Salle University Green Archers in the UAAP Season 81 men’s basketball on Sunday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Ferdinand “Thirdy” Ravena III led the way with double-double 14 points and 11 rebounds while Angelo Kouame bucked an early foul trouble to finish with 11 points and 10 boards for the Blue Eagles (11-2).
Trailing 21-29 midway in the second period, the Blue Eagles slowly clawed their way back behind Ravena and William Navarro to cut the deficit 26-32. Five straight points by Mike Nieto allowed Ateneo to tie the count at 35-all.
The Green Archers regained the lead 47-45 early in the third after a basket by Andrei Caracut but inside hits by Kouame and Gian Mamuyac and a triple by George Go gave the Blue Eagles a 54-50 upper hand.
In the fourth the Blue Eagles continued their run on inside conversions from Kouame and Ravena to build their largest lead 71-58. The Green Archers made a last run and managed to come to as close as mere 9 points.
Aljun Melecio led the Green Archers (8-5) with 13 points, while Justine Baltazar and Leonard Santillan added 12 and 10 markers, respectively.
In the first game Far Eastern University Tamaraws kept their Final Four hopes alive with a 79-74 victory over the already-eliminated National University Bulldogs.
Arvin Tolentino and Kenneth Tuffin finished with 16 and 15 points, respectively, for the Tamaraws, which tied with University of the Philippines Maroons (7-6)./PN
