By ADRIAN STEWART CO
Mason Amos came up with clutch baskets in the fourth quarter as Ateneo de Manila University Blue Eagles prevailed over De La Salle University (DLSU) Green Archers, 77-72, in the UAAP Season 86 men’s basketball at SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City on Wednesday, October 4.
Trailing 47-54 after three quarters, the Blue Eagles slowly clawed their way back in the final quarter to take a 64-61 lead after a basket from Amos, but the Green Archers tied the score at 64-all courtesy of a triple from Kevin Quiambao.
Amos then heated up with back-to-back triples to give Ateneo a 70-64 lead, but Quiambao trimmed it to 67-70 for DLSU with a three-pointer.
However, the Blue Eagles got conversions from Kai Ballungay and Jared Brown to secure the victory.
Amos finished the game with 12 points, with eight coming in the final quarter, to go with five rebounds as the defending champion Blue Eagles notched their first win of the season on a 1-1 slate.
Christopher Koon top-scored for the Blue Eagles with 19 points, including four three-point connections. Ballungay added double-double 18 points and 16 rebounds, while Joseph Obasa also had a double-double of 11 points and 16 rebounds.
Quimbao led the Green Archers with a near triple-double numbers of 17 points, 14 rebounds and seven assists, while Evan Nelle and Earl Abadam added 15 and 11 markers, respectively, as they dropped to 1-1.
Meanwhile, Joem Sabandal played the hero role as Adamson University Falcons escaped the all-Filipino University of Santo Tomas Growling Tigers in overtime, 79-76, to record their first win of the season.
Scoreless for the first 39 minutes and 54 seconds of the game, Sabandal made a turnaround jumper with 5.2 seconds left in the fourth frame for a momentary 68-66 lead before Nicael Cabañero sent it to overtime.
Sabandal then punched in seven points in the Falcons’ 9-2 start in the extra period for a 77-70 lead.
The Growling Tigers rallied to within 76-77 on back-to-back triples by Cabañero, but free throws by Matthew Montebon and Cedrick Manzano sealed the win for Adamson.
Sabandal finished the game with nine points, while Manzano led the way for the Falcons with 16 points, with 10 coming in the fourth quarter, while Matt Erolon contributed 11 markers.
ATENEO 77 — Koon 19, Ballungay 18, Amos 12, Obasa 11, Brown 8, Espinosa 5, Lazaro 2, Quitevis 1, Chiu 1, Credo 0, Bongo 0, Nieto 0, Gomez 0.
DLSU 72 — Quiambao 17, Nelle 15, Abadam 11, Nonoy 9, Austria 5, Cortez 4, Manuel 3, Nwankwo 3, B. Phillips 3, M. Phillips 2, David 0, Escandor 0, Gollena 0.
Quarterscores: 25-23, 37-39, 47-54, 77-72./ASC, WDJ