Eagles vent ire on Bulldogs

Amidst swirling rumors of an impending ouster of their coach, the Ateneo Eagles soared to redeem themselves from a sorry loss to the La Salle Archers Sunday as they clawed the National U Bulldogs, 68-60, in the 64th UAAP basketball tournament at the Loyola Gym yesterday.

Displaying a patch in their uniform which read "I love Joe," the Eagles rallied behind coach Joe Lipa and notched their first victory in the season at the expense of the Bulldogs.

The Bulldogs suffered their first loss after stunning the University of the East Warriors, 94-74, last week.

There were reports that influential Ateneo alumni want Lipa out of the team. An Ateneo insider confirmed there was a meeting among some of the group Monday but didn’t reveal what was talked about.

Rookie Luis Tenorio, a guard fresh out of San Beda High, scored two triples in the final quarter, including one in the homestretch capping a telling run that all but scuttled NU’s bid.

Tenorio scored a game-high 18 points while Enrico Villanueva and Richard Alvarez added 17 and 10 points, respectively.

Leo Avenido scored 19 points as Far Eastern University survived University of the Philippines, 75-68, to seize the solo lead with a 2-0 slate. — Joey Villar