Ateneo de Manila University (AdMU) remained undefeated in the 82nd UAAP men’s basketball season following their 66-52 win over the University of Santo Tomas last Saturday at the SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.
Ilonggo forward Ferdinand ‘Thirdy’ Ravena III tallied 17 points and nine rebounds for AdMU; while Bacolodnon point guard Samjosef Belangel chipped in 11 markers.
Both teams struggled offensively early on with AdMU clinging to a 10-8 edge after the first 10 minutes before creating distance in the second period on triples by Ravena and Belangel. They went on build double-digit leads several times in the second half but UST countered with a rally and narrowed their deficit to 54-48; however, AdMU pulled away and took their largest lead of 64-50.
“That was a really tough—really physical game—too physical than the way it should be,” said AdMU head coach Tab Baldwin. “They really make your life miserable and, in the fourth quarter, they started making their shots.”
In the other game, the University of the East scored an 80-74 win over Adamson University./ASC, WDJ