MANILA, Philippines – Ateneo finished strong in the endgame in turning back a gritty UP squad, 86-73, to nail its third straight win in the 77th season of the UAAP men's basketball tournament at the Mall of Asia Arena on Wednesday.
Prized recruit Arvin Tolentino led all scorers with 20 points while Kiefer Ravena and Chris Newsome chipped in 19 and 18 markers, respectively, to power the Eagles, who sit at the top of the standings with a 3-0 card.
"I really had a bad feeling that we were going to grind today against UP. If not for the heroics of Arvin and Kiefer, we would be in trouble at the end," said ADMU coach Bo Perasol.
"They thought it's going to be a breeze against UP but in the end, we were able to fight it out against a very determined team," he added.
Ateneo dangerously led by only four, 71-67, after a JR Gallanza triple in the 4:47 mark but stringed together an 11-1 run capped by a Tolentino putback to give them an 82-68 upperhand with 1:02 left in the game.
"Nung una medyo tight kami. Sinabi nga ni coach, nakapag-prepare yung UP para sa amin. Nag-step up lang ako, si (Chris) Newsome, (Nico) Elorde. Hindi naman kaya ni Kief mag-isa, kailangan talaga tulungan namin siya," said Tolentino.
Perasol, for his part, acknowledged Tolentino as a vital cog for the Katipunan-based squad.
"There was no doubt in my mind that he can impact the game as far as scoring is concerned. He is used to highly competitive games, and that's the reason we really pursued him," Perasol said of the highly touted Tolentino, who came from powerhouse San Beda in the NCAA juniors.
Kyles Lao paced the Maroons with 16 points while Gallanza added 10 markers for the Diliman-based squad, which suffered their 24th straight loss extending back to two seasons ago.
UP also came close at the third quarter when they cut the lead, 49-51, at the 4:47 mark of the third quarter via a Kyles Lao lay-up. But Ateneo countered with a 12-0 run and eventually closed the third quarter with a 66-54 advantage.
Newsome waxed hot in the first half with 15 points and led the Eagles to a 46-38 advantage at the break.