By MARK REY MONTEJO
University of the Philippines banked on its second half onslaught and cruised past Ateneo, 75-47, to bolster its semifinal bonus bid in the UAAP Season 87 men’s basketball tournament Wednesday evening, Oct. 30, at Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.
The Fighting Maroons displayed their brilliance on both ends and unleashed a lethal 17-0 blast led by Francis Lopez to erect a 54-28 cushion in the third quarter and take the fight out of the Blue Eagles.
The State U rolled to its third consecutive and ninth win overall against one defeat to stay at second place behind defending champ La Salle (10-1). The Diliman-based squad also reaffirmed its mastery over Ateneo, which it beat, 77-61, on the opening day.
After its two straight victories, things isn’t looking good for Ateneo as it fell to a 3-8 hole to get deeper in the standings.
Lopez starred with 20 points – all he scored in the first three frames – on top of five rebounds while Quentin Millora-Brown backstopped him with a double-double performance of 11 points and 10 rebounds.
Jared Bahay, who listed his career-high 22 points in Ateneo’s loss to archrival La Salle, had a quiet six points off a 2-of-12 shooting. Chris Koon and Shawn Tuano chalked up 9 and 8 points in a losing cause.
Meanwhile, AJ Fransman and Matt Erolon caught fire from the distance as Adamson University fended off University of the East in late game, 45-37, to end its five-game skid.
The Soaring Falcons made enough separation in the second half especially in the fourth quarter where Fransman engineered a 12-2 run highlighted by his two triples to make it 45-34 late in the game.
Adamson broke the three-way tie at the bottom half of the standings with a 4-7 card to keep its playoff contention alive at fifth place. The Falcons also avenged themselves against the Jack Santiago-mentored crew which beat them with a 63-62 escape last Oct. 6.
UE, in spite of defeat, remains at fourth with a 6-4 record.
Precious Momowei, who again played for almost 40 minutes, registered another double-double output of 12 points – the lone double-digit scorer for UE – and 17 rebounds with three steals while Devin Fikes and John Abate added 9 and 8.
Fransman and Erolon topscored for the San Marcelino-based squad after listing 14 points apiece while Cedrick Manzano backed them up with 12 on top of 11 rebounds.
Both teams went on a dry spell that resulted in a low-scoring affair for the Final Four hopefuls.
But with Adamson’s stifling defense and Fransman and Erolon’s torrid touches from three-point range, the Falcons found ways to push the gas pedal after the break en route to their first victory since Sept. 25).
Earlier, Adamson rolled past University of the East, 66-48, to make it three in a row and strengthen its hold of the third spot in the women’s basketball tourney
Aside from improving their record to 8-3, the Lady Falcons officially secured their Final Four ticket – their first since Season 82 or in 2019. On the other hand, the Lady Warriors suffered their ninth defeat for a 1-9 card.
Cris Padilla and Elaine Etang starred for Adamson with 17 and 12, respectively.
Meanwhile, Ateneo bolstered its grip for a playoff ticket after beating UP, 75-66, to notch its sixth victory against five losses.
The scores:
First game (Men’s basketball)
AdU (45) – Erolon 14, Fransman 14, Manzano 12, Montebon 3, Anabo 2, Calisay 0, Ramos 0, Yerro 0, Barasi 0, Mantua 0, Ojarikre 0.
UE (37) – Momowei 12, Fikes 9, Abate 8, Lingolingo 5, Maga 2, Spandonis 1, J. Cruz-Dumont 0, Galang 0, H. Cruz-Dumont 0, Mulingtapang 0, Finney 0, Wilson 0, Malaga 0, Go 0, Robles 0.
Quarterscores: 13-12, 22-19, 33-32, 45-37
Second game (Men’s basketball)
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.
Quarterscores: 17-15, 39-28, 66-40, 75-47
