Eagles soar on Tiu’s trey; Tigers edge Tamaraws

Ateneo banked on Chris Tiu’s triple and two crucial stops down the stretch as it edged Adamson, 73-72, yesterday to seize the solo lead in the 69th UAAP basketball tournament at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.

Tiu, who studied in Paris, France for a while before returning in January, scored seven of his nine points in the final period, including a triple from the left flank with 20.6 seconds remaining that gave Ateneo the go-ahead basket before the Eagles preserved the win with a tough defense.

"It’s nice to have him back, it gives us one more shooter in the team," said Ateneo coach Norman Black of the former Xavier School standout.

Ken Bono bungled two scoring opportunities in the Falcons’ last two possessions, including their last play when he posted against Ford Arao only to see the ball stolen by Yuri Escueta as time expired.

Doug Kramer fired 14 points and hauled down 11 rebounds for Ateneo, now in the lead with three straight wins.

Earlier, Bono, who ran roughshod over Arao all game long to finish with 19 points, overshot a jumper that would have sealed it for Adamson, which took a 72-70 lead before that Bono miss and Tiu’s booming trey.

Patrick Cabahug led all scorers with 22 points, highlighted by four triples, but Adamson coach Leo Austria gambled on Bono in the clutch in a move that backfired for the Falcons.

"It’s a good win for us because we know Adamson is going to be tough and they proved me right," said Black, who scored a Grand Slam in the PBA but still in search of a title victory in the collegiate league.

It was the Falcons’ second loss against a win.

In the other game, Dylan Ababou scored on a three-point play with 8.6 seconds to go as University of Santo Tomas stunned defending champion Far Eastern, 90-87, for its first win in two games.

Despite missing Jemal Vizcarra due to a left hamstring injury, the Tigers dictated the pace and led by as many as 14 points in the fourth quarter behind Jervy Cruz and Jojo Duncil, who had 25 points apiece.

But the Tams roared back to knot the count at 87-all before Duncil spotted an open Ababou who was fouled by Jonas Villanueva for the shot that mattered most in the day.

FEU fell to 0-2.