MANILA, Philippines — The Ateneo Blue Eagles rebounded from their loss against the NU Bulldogs with a 68-54 rout of archrivals DLSU Green Archers in the second round of the UAAP Season 85 men's basketball tournament at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Saturday.
With another patented third quarter where they outscored La Salle, 27-10, the Blue Eagles pounced on a La Salle side playing without an injured Schonny Winston.
Related Stories
"I think that the third quarter was very telling. We defended great in the third quarter and that led to some easy points which allowed us to get some separation on the scoreboard, which was pretty critical. You never know what's gonna happen in the game." said Ateneo head coach Tab Baldwin.
The Katipunan-based cagers also avenged their first round loss to their rivals with the convincing win. They improved their record to 6-3.
La Salle is sent reeling to its fourth straight loss as its slate drops to 3-6. Because of DLSU's loss, defending champions UP are now assured of a spot in the Final Four.
Ateneo's lead reached a high of 22 after a Forthsky Padrigao triple with 8:21 left in the game, 61-39.
But La Salle did not go down without a fight as a 10-0 run got them within 12, 49-61, with 4:27 ticks remaining.
A split at the line from Kai Ballungay and a triple from Chris Koon created distance anew for the Blue Eagles, 65-49, with less than three minutes left.
Ange Kouame claimed Player of the Game honors with 11 points, 14 rebounds, three steals and five blocks. He was also 5-of-9 from the field.
Both teams return to action after the UAAP FIBA break on November 17, Thursday. Ateneo faces UST while La Salle locks horns with Adamson.
The Scores:
ATENEO 68 -- Ildefonso 12, Kouame 11, Ballungay 11, Koon 11, Padrigao 11, Andrade 8, Gomez 2, Chiu 2, Lazaro 0.
LA SALLE 54 -- Nelle 15, Nwankwo 7, Quiambao 6, Nonoy 6, Austria 5, Estacio 5, Manuel 4, M. Phillips 3, Abadam 2, Macalalag 1.
Quarters: 10-16, 29-29, 56-39, 68-54.