Eagles feast on Red Warriors

Larry Fonacier delivered the goods last night as defending champion Ateneo got back at University of the East, 76-67, for its sixth straight win in the 66th UAAP season at the Araneta Coliseum.

Fonacier, always willing to take the important shots, drilled in eight points in a 12-3 run that gave the Blue Eagles a 73-61 lead with only 2:44 remaining. He had two triples in that stretch and went on to finish with 15 points, nine rebounds and five assists.

"Larry will always be there when you need him," said Ateneo coach Joel Banal, who was not around, still calling the shots for Talk N Text in the PBA, when the Warriors defeated the Blue Eagles in the first round.

"I’m happy to survive UE. I felt that we had more energy in the end. But our six straight wins won’t mean anything if we don’t go all the way, us being the defending champions," added Banal.

With the victory, the Blue Eagles climbed to solo second at 6-2, behind the FEU Tamaraws’ 7-1 slate. The Warriors, in turn, slipped into a tie for third with the La Salle Green Archers at 5-3.

Earlier, Santo Tomas got out of a three-game slump and opened up its second round campaign with an 83-78 victory over National University.

It was only the third win in eight outings for Santo Tomas while the loss was the seventh straight for NU since beating UP in the season opener last July 12.

After pulling off a big win over frontrunning FEU, the Growling Tigers lost their last three games to UP, Adamson and UE in the first round but seemed to have recovered their bearing against the Falcons.

Santo Tomas broke loose from a 35-35 halftime score and took a 73-61 lead in the final 3:42. But a barrage of triples from NU closed the gap to 79-77, forcing the Growling Tigers to scramble for every point heading into the final seconds.

"Hindi ako bilib sa panalo. Lamang na ng dose, naibaba pa sa dalawa. Matitigas ang ulo ng mga bata. Pag lumamang, nagre-relax agad," said Santo Tomas coach Aric del Rosario, scheduled to leave for Kuala Lumpur with the RP team today for the SEABA Championships.

Del Rosario, who will also call the shots for the RP team in this year’s ABC Championship and SEA Games, will be back on Friday in time for the game between Santo Tomas and Adamson the day after.

Earlier, University of Santo Tomas overwhelmed National U, 83-78.