What was expected to be a tight ballgame turned out to be a rout as the Blue Eagles, once again starring LA Tenorio, gradually pulled away in the second half for their ninth win in 11 games.
With still three games left in the elims, Ateneo is now assured of a Final Four ticket. Two more wins will give the Blue Eagles one of the top two slots and a twice-to-beat edge in the semis.
Ateneo scored a seven-game sweep of the first round before splitting its first four matches in the second, beating Santo Tomas and Adamson and losing to UE and La Salle.
In the first round, Ateneo defeated Adamson by three points. In that game, the Blue Eagles trailed by as many as 17 points before Tenorio hit the marginal triple in the dying seconds.
There was no need for Tenorio’s end-game heroics yesterday as the Falcons continued to fumble, losing for the sixth time in their last seven games.
Adamson got off to a 3-1 start this season but failed to keep it up. At 4-7 and running out of gas, the Falcons must sweep their last three games against La Salle, UE and Santo Tomas to stay alive.
Earlier, La Salle was just as convincing in beating Santo Tomas, 86-77, for its third straight win and an overall record of 7-4. The win pushed the Green Archers closer to the Final Four.
For the Tigers, it was their fourth straight loss in the second round and, at 4-6, are in the same sticky situation as the Falcons. Unless something good happens, they’ll be in for an early vacation.