NOT even a full force Adamson squad was enough to make a dent on Ateneo's dominant run in UAAP Season 80 as the Blue Eagles came away with a 71-59 victory on Saturday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Ateneo basically repeated its 85-65 first-round victory over Adamson, though that was without Papi Sarr.
But even with Sarr back, the Falcons just can't seem to find a way to keep things close as they saw their four game winning run snapped.
Known for their fluid offense all throughout the season, the Blue Eagles showed fine defensive in this game, limiting the Falcons to just 24 points in the first half to set the tone.
The Blue Eagles continued to dominate in the second half, led by the methodical play of Thirdy Ravena and padded that lead to as many as 21 points, 71-50, following a three pointer from seldom used BJ Andrade.
The win was Ateneo's eighth in as many games as the Falcons dropped to 4-4.
"It was a defensive game. Adamson is a very good defensive team also. The 23 points we had in the third quarter gave us the cushion we wanted to make sure that our defense would lead to opportunities for us on the break," said Ateneo coach Sandy Arespacochaga.
Ravena and Isaac Go starred in that third period as they continued to create cushion heading into the fourth period. By the time, the veterans were done, the bench came in and finished the job.
"We also focused on our perimeter defense. I would like to commend our guards for defending their guards," said Arespacochaga.
Ravena led Ateneo's balanced attack with 15 points and nine boards as Go and Vince Tolentino chipped in eight apiece.
Papi Sarr led the Falcons with 15 points but offense from their guards went missing as Jerie Pingoy, Jerrick Ahanmisi and Robbie Manalang combined to shoot 6 for 24.
The scores:
Ateneo 71 – Ravena 15, Tolentino 8, Go 8, Ikeh 7, Black 7, Nieto Mi 6, Asistio 4, Verano 3, Tio 3, Mendoza 3, Andrade 3, Nieto Ma 2, Porter 2, Mamuyac 0, Malillin 0, White 0.
Adamson 59 – Sarr 15, Pingoy 9, Ahanmisi 6, Hill 6, Espeleta 5, Mustre 5, Manganti 4, Camacho 2, Lojera 2, Ochea 2, Zaldivar 2, Manalang 1, Bernardo 0, Chua 0, Paranada 0.
Quarterscores: 16-10; 31-24; 54-41; 71-59.
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