Semis-bound UP reasserts mastery over Ateneo, deals Tab Baldwin worst loss in UAAP
MANILA, Philippines – The Battle of Katipunan still belongs to the UP Fighting Maroons.
After locking up a Final Four berth in its previous outing, UP showed no signs of letup and handed its Katipunan rival Ateneo Blue Eagles a 75-47 beating in the UAAP Season 87 men’s basketball tournament at the Mall of Asia Arena on Wednesday, October 30.
High-flying forward Francis Lopez proved to be a thorn in the side of his former school Ateneo as he exploded for a game-high 20 points on a very efficient 7-of-9 shooting in less than 19 minutes of play.
Ateneo also had no answers for UP’s one-and-done big man Quentin Millora-Brown, who produced a double-double of 11 points on 5-of-8 field goal clip and 10 rebounds.
Following the season sweep of Ateneo, UP — which captured its third straight win — boosted its bid for a twice-to-beat Final Four bonus with a 9-1 record, just one game behind the league-leading La Salle Green Archers (10-1).
Overall, the victory marks the Fighting Maroons’ fourth straight win against the Blue Eagles dating back to the second round of Season 86.
UP’s 28-point thrashing of Ateneo also marks Tab Baldwin’s worst loss as UAAP head coach as it surpassed the 16-point blowout the Fighting Maroons dealt the Blue Eagles in their opening-day encounter last September 7.
The Fighting Maroons were only ahead by 2 points at the end of a back-and-forth first period, 17-15, before unleashing a quick 8-0 blast in the first 64 seconds of the second frame for a 25-15 advantage.
Still enjoying a double-digit edge at halftime, 39-28, UP once again came out with guns blazing to start the new quarter as it uncorked a 15-0 rally in the first five minutes of the third to stretch its lead even further to 26 points, 54-28.
A three-pointer by Andrew Bongo at the 4:39 mark finally ended Ateneo’s drought in the third quarter, but Lopez immediately countered with his own long bomb as UP cruised the rest of the way, even pushing its double-digit cushion to its largest at 30 points, 75-45, late in the fourth.
“We started out well. I could say that we adopted to the changing defense of Ateneo,” said UP coach Goldwin Monteverde.
“The team was able to adapt right away, we were able to move the ball, and at the same time, we were able to get the ball inside, which is one of our strengths also,” added Monteverde as the Fighting Maroons shot a terrific 27-of-51 clip from the two-point area.
No Ateneo player breached double-digit scoring in the lopsided defeat as Chris Koon finished with a team-best 9 points on 4-of-8 shooting.
Shawn Tuano backstopped Koon with 8 points as Ateneo rookie Jared Bahay was held to only 6 points on a dismal 2-of-12 shooting after going off for a career-best 22 points against La Salle last Saturday, October 26.
After a short two-game winning run to open the second round, the Blue Eagles have now dropped two games in a row with an average margin of 21.5 points.
Ateneo fell all the way to the No. 7 spot with a 3-8 record.
The Scores
UP 75 – Lopez 20, Millora-Brown 11, Bayla 7, Torres 7, Stevens 7, Abadiano 6, Belmonte 5, Fortea 5, Alarcon 4, Cagulangan 2, Felicilda 0, Ududo 0, Briones 0, Torculas 0, Alter 0, Walker 0.
Ateneo 47 – Koon 9, Tuano 8, Bongo 7, Bahay 6, Porter 4, Balogun 4, Espina 3, Espinosa 2, Lazaro 2, Dela Cruz 2, Asoro 0, Quitevis 0, Reyes 0, Gamber 0, Edu 0.
Quarters: 17-15, 39-28, 66-40, 75-47.
– Rappler.com