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By ADRIAN STEWART CO
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MANILA – George Isaac Go scored the marginal basket in overtime as the Ateneo Blue Eagles entered the UAAP Season 79 men’s basketball finals with a 69-68 win over the Far Eastern University Tamaraws on Wednesday at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum.
Trailing 68-67 following a conversion by Tamaraws’ Ron Dennison, the Blue Eagles surged to a 69-68 lead on a basket from inside by Go. The Tamaraws had a chance to win it but Monbert Arong’s conversion did not count.
Go finished with double-double 12 points and 13 rebounds for the Blue Eagles, which will face archrival De La Salle University Green Archers in the best-of-three finals beginning on Saturday.
Mike Nieto top-scored with 13 points, while Ilonggo Ferdinand “Thirdy” Ravena III added 11 markers for the Blue Eagles, which suffered a 62-61 loss to the Tamaraws in Game 1 last Saturday.
The Blue Eagles opened the match with a 15-9 lead behind Vince Tolentino and Ravena, but the Tamaraws made a counter run courtesy of Arong and Jose for a 20-15 lead.
The Blue Eagles made another run to open the second frame and regain the lead at 26-22 on hits by Anton Asistio and Raffy Verano. After several lead changes, the Tamaraws advanced to the halftime with a 41-38 lead on a three-point play by Richard Escoto.
With the Tamaraws holding on to a 45-40 edge, the Blue Eagles went on a huge surge behind Ravena, Tolentino and Matt Nieto for a 47-45 lead. Back-to-back hits by Ravena gave the Blue Eagles a 53-49 advantage heading into the final quarter.
The Tamaraws responded anew to start the fourth and snatch the lead at 56-55 on a basket by Arong. Both teams then went on a see-saw battle with the Blue Eagles ahead 66-64 on a Ravena twinner. Dennison sent the game to overtime with an inside hit.
Both teams exchanged missed shots in the overtime period until the Blue Eagles took a 67-66 lead on a Tolentino free throw. The Tamaraws regained the edge on a conversion by Dennison before Go scored the game-winner for the Blue Eagles at the 1:20 mark.
Arong finished with 15 points, while Jose and Escoto chipped in 12 and 11 points, respectively, for the dethroned champions Tamaraws, which will lose head coach Nash Racela at the end of the season as he is set to take over the TNT Katropa coaching job in the PBA./PN
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