By Jerome Lagunzad
Games Saturday
(Smart-Araneta Coliseum)
2 p.m. — La Salle vs NU
4 p.m. — Adamson vs UST
Powerhouse Ateneo earned the scalp of another perceived Final Four contender last night and the Blue Eagles did it by unleashing another potent weapon.
Blue-chip rookie Tyler Tio provided the numbers more than the grace keenly awaited from him as Ateneo handled University of the Philippines with ease, 92-71, to go on top of the UAAP men’s basketball tournament at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum.
After sitting out last season due to citizenship issue and their 85-65 victory over Adamson over the weekend due to a sprained left ankle, the 5-foot-11 Tio proved he’s worth the wait as he banged in 10 of his 14 points in succession to open the final canto that allowed the Blue Eagles to pull away for good.
“It was a very good performance considering this is just his first game and a little bit rusty coming from injury,” said Ateneo assistant coach Sandy Arespacochaga, visibly pleased with Tio’s debut performance highlighted by a flawless 6-of-6 shooting from the field and two assists in just 11 minutes of play.
“Of course, Tyler got a great performance tonight,” butted in top wingman Thirdy Ravena, who had a team-high 16 points, 14 of them coming in the second half where the Blue Eagles displayed their well-oiled offensive machine that complemented yet another suffocating defensive stance.
Rookie Juan Gomez de Liano also had 16 points but ace guard Paul Desiderio struggled with just nine points on 4-of-18 shooting from the field as UP dropped to an even 1-1 card.
Earlier, Ron Dennison took up the offensive cudgels in the stretch as Far Eastern University fended off the University of the East’s late fightback 90-83.
The 6-foot Dennison, now playing on his fifth and final year, continued his offensive resurgence as he tallied a team-high 16 points, including six straight inside the last four minutes that enabled the Tamaraws to keep a late-charging Red Warriors side at bay.
First Game
FEU 90 – Dennison 16, Orizu 15, Escoto 11, Ebona 11, Tolentino 11, Inigo 8, Ramirez 7, Parker 4, Trinidad 3, Tuffin 2, Comboy 2, Cani 0, Bienes 0.
UE 83 – Derige 22, Pasaol 13, Acuno 8, Abanto 8, Manalang 6, Olayon 6, Maloles 6, Varilla 5, Conner 4, Bartolome 3, Cullar 1, Armenion 1, Gagate 0.
Quarters: 28-11, 52-42, 75-64, 90-83.
Second Game
ATENEO 92 – Ravena 16, Tio 14, Black 9, Ikeh 9, Asistio 7, Nieto Ma. 7, Verano 7, Go 6, Nieto Ma. 5, Porter 4, Mendoza 3, Mamuyac 2, Mallillin 2, Tolentino 1, Andrade 0, White 0.
UP 71 – De Liaño Ju. 16, Manzo 14, Lim 10, Desiderio 9, De Liaño Ja. 6, Prado 6, Webb 3, Romero 3, Ouattara 2, Lao 2, Vito 0, Harris 0, Dario 0.
Quarters: 22-16, 44-36, 62-51, 92-71.