DEFENDING champion Ateneo used a strong third-quarter charge to wiggle out of La Salle's grasp and take a 74-57 victory and rule atop the UAAP Season 84 men's basketball tournament Saturday at Mall of Asia Arena.
Ateneo vs La Salle recap
The Blue Eagles built a 13-point cushion after staging a 14-2 spurt from a close 42-41 affair, erecting a 56-43 lead after an Ange Kouame bucket with 1:23 remaining in the frame.
Kurt Lojera's three brought the Green Archers within 11, 61-50, with 6:12 left in the game, but Kouame and SJ Belangel denied that rally with big buckets to stretch the lead to its biggest at 17, 69-52, and secure the Katipunan side's fourth straight win.
Kouame delivered a monster 16-point, 19-rebound double-double alongside two blocks to anchor Ateneo to its 30th straight win dating back from October 2018.
Gian Mamuyac's contributions on the defensive end was also huge in that pullaway as he ended up with 11 points, six steals, and six boards, while Dave Ildefonso got 12 points, five rebounds, and two assists.
"Tough game," remarked coach Tab Baldwin. "It was a game where it was never comfortable until the very end. We just kept on squeezing and squeezing and squeezing and we rebounded the ball so much better in the fourth."
Michael Phillips carried the flag for La Salle with a double-double of 13 points and 10 rebounds in his first rivalry game, albeit behind closed doors.
Mark Nonoy got 12 points on 3-of-10 clip from the field, alongside three rebounds and two assists and Evan Nelle had 10 points on 4-of-13 shooting, to go with two boards and two dimes in a game where Green Archers' main man Justine Baltazar was contained to just five points on 2-of-10 field goal shooting.
La Salle suffered its first loss after its 3-0 start this season.
The Scores:
ATENEO 74 -- Kouame 16, Ildefonso 12, Mamuyac 11, Belangel 8, Tio 6, Koon 6, Chiu 6, Andrade 3, Verano 2, Padrigao 2, Lazaro 2.
LA SALLE 57 -- M. Phillips 13, Nonoy 12, Nelle 10, Lojera 9, Winston 6, Baltazar 5, Nwankwo 2, Manuel 0, Austria 0, B. Phillips 0.
Quarters: 16-11, 35-32, 58-45, 74-57.
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