The Ateneo De Manila University proved that even those atop the standings could be taken down from their throne, as they stopped the De La Salle University from claiming another win and sweeping the UAAP basketball season.
Ateneo claimed their third straight win and gave the Green Archers their first beating in the season on Saturday, 83-71 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
From the first quarter of the match, the Blue Eagles took an early lead, 23-16 and continued to take control of the game and pull away from the Green Archers to avoid a meltdown with as much as an 18-point lead.
Aaron Black displayed his best offensive performance with 16 points and seven rebounds for Ateneo since his return from a foot injury. Matt Nieto and John Wong did not disappoint after giving away 15 and 11 points, respectively, while Isaac Go powered Ateneo in the defensive end and contributed 10 points.
“It’s a great win, but we can’t be satisfied with it. We’re still chasing the number two seat. This is a great step forward and we can’t be complacent,” said Go.
The Green Archers was limited to 29% shooting while the Blue Eagles exploded with 51%. Ateneo’s rebound was dominant in the match as well, 48-45 and had double the total number of assists of La Salle, 20-10.
Ateneo Coach Sandy Arespacochaga pointed out that DLSU is still a “one heck of a team’ as the Green Archers remains in the first place with a 12-1 win-loss record. However, due to their first loss in the season, DLSU was prevented from an automatic berth in the finals.
Ateneo solidified their hold of third place in the tournament after winning seven out of 11 outings and assured of a place in the final four.
Jeron Teng had 18 points for DLSU with Ben Mbala’s double-double 17 points and 15 rebounds. Aljum Melecio also added 11 points.
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