Eagles tame Tams; Warriors nip Archers

MANILA, Philippines — Reigning champion Ateneo kept its immaculate slate after taming FEU, 63-46, in the 82nd UAAP men’s basketball tournament at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City last night.

The Blue Eagles went on a searing 18-3 start and never looked back as they solidified their hold of pole position with a 4-0 card midway through the first round.

Ivorian center Angelo Kouame posted 14 points, 12 rebounds and three blocks for a good follow-up to his 11-10 double-double outing in Ateneo’s nail-biting 71-70 win against UST earlier this week while Adrian Wong and skipper Thirdy Ravena added 13 and 12 markers, respectively.

“From the looks of it, we’re a pretty good defensive team but shooting was a concern. It’s a good defensive struggle. We had all kinds of problems in the first half but credit to the boys for the job they did in defense,” said head coach Tab Baldwin as Ateneo held down FEU to meager 29-percent clip.

“Against FEU, there’s no safe lead. They’re a couple of baskets from bringing it closer. We just did a good job holding the line.”

After a hot start, Ateneo had to shrug off a nightmarish second period marred by a paltry five-point output, unleashing an 17-9 salvo punctuated by a Kouame triple to turn a low-scoring 23-15 halftime affair into a huge 42-23 spread halfway through the third quarter.

FEU slipped to 1-2.

Meanwhile, Rey Suerte felt lucky as he erupted for 31 points, including back-to-back crucial treys in the waning seconds to lift UE to a thrilling 89-88 upset win over La Salle.

The Scores:

First Game

UE 89 – Suerte 31, Tolentino 19, Cruz 13, Pagsanjan 8, Apacible 6, Conner 4, Mendoza 4, Natividad 4, Abanto 0, Camacho 0, Diakhite 0, Sawat 0.

DLSU 88 – Baltazar 21, Melecio 21, Caracut 16, Serrano 14, Pado 9, Lojera 3, Bartlett 2, Manuel 2, Bates 0, Hill 0.

Quarterscores: 28-24, 48-37, 70-63, 89-88. Second Game

ATENEO 63 – Kouame 14, Wong 13, Ravena 12, Mi. Nieto 4,Navarro 4, Mamuyac 3, Ma. Nieto 3, Tio 3, Belangel 2, Daves 2, Go 2, Maagdenberg 1, Andrade 0, Chiu 0, Credo 0, Mallillin 0.

FEU 46 – Ebona 8, Torres 8, Comboy 6, Gonzales 6, Nunag 5, Bienes 4, Tuffin 3, Alforque 2, Tempra 2, Cani 1, Tchuente 1, Celzo 0, Dulatre 0, Mantua 0, Stockton 0.

Quarterscores: 18-6, 23-15, 47-32, 63-46.